Nigeria
Islamic insurgency isn’t just a Mideast problem, as Africans know all too well
By Fredrick Nzwili — December 29, 2014
NAIROBI, Kenya (RNS) In 2014, Africans suffered dozens of deadly terror attacks by groups either allied with Islamic State leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi or using similarly bloody tactics.
Sierra Leone bans Christmas, New Year’s celebrations to prevent spread of Ebola
By Fredrick Nzwili — December 15, 2014
NAIROBI, Kenya (RNS) Officials said soldiers will be deployed on the streets and people are advised to stay at home with their families.
Détente on Christmas * Beard passes * Christ Bless Mississippi: Religious Freedom Recap
By Brian Pellot — December 4, 2014
This month's religious freedom news and views from around the world. Read with caution. Prozac optional.
Boko Haram terrorists aim at Nigeria’s Muslims, too, killing 120 Friday worshippers
By Fredrick Nzwili — December 1, 2014
(RNS) The Islamist militant group Boko Haram has waged a campaign of terror in this part of the country since 2009. It had previously targeted churches.
Don’t forget the Nigerian schoolgirls, or girls’ education (COMMENTARY)
By Christy Vines — November 6, 2014
(RNS) The time for the U.S. to act together with the world to rescue the Nigerian schoolgirls (and those recently abducted) is now.
Negotiations with Boko Haram a farce, says Catholic priest
By Fredrick Nzwili — October 29, 2014
NAIROBI, Kenya (RNS) “This is a farce and a grand deceit,” said the Rev. John Bakeni, a Roman Catholic priest in Nigeria, speaking of his country's peace negotiations with the Islamist group Boko Haram to release abducted schoolgirls.
Nigerian atheist’s case isn’t just about religion
By Chris Stedman — July 23, 2014
Nigerian atheist Mubarak Bala, who was forcibly hospitalized, is still at risk—and the intersection of political religion and colonial-era laws is to blame.
In a nutshell: What is Boko Haram?
By Oren Dorell — May 8, 2014
(RNS) Boko Haram opposes the education of girls and has kidnapped girls to use as cooks and sex slaves. It has killed hundreds of children.
Vatican calls for release of kidnapped Nigerian girls
By Josephine McKenna — May 8, 2014
VATICAN CITY (RNS) “The denial of any kind of respect for life and for the dignity of human beings, even the most innocent, vulnerable and defenseless, calls for the strongest condemnation,” the Vatican's chief spokesman said.
Nigerian Christians begin three-day fast after schoolgirls kidnapped
By Fredrick Nzwili — April 22, 2014
(RNS) For five years, the Islamist insurgency known as Boko Haram has unleashed violence in northern Nigeria, but the girls’ abduction is viewed as the most terrifying so far.
Christian leaders urge dialogue with Nigeria’s violent Boko Haram
By Fredrick Nzwili — March 19, 2014
(RNS) While attacks on Christians ignite violent reprisals in the Central African Republic, Christian leaders in Nigeria continue to insist on a path of dialogue and nonviolence with Boko Haram, the Islamic militant group.
Church of England’s bishops defer gay marriage decision
By Trevor Grundy — January 27, 2014
CANTERBURY, England (RNS) With little more than two months to go before Britain’s first same-sex marriage, the College of Bishops issued a statement saying that "no change" to the Church of England’s teaching on marriage is proposed or envisioned.
COMMENTARY: The church’s role in, and against, homophobia across Africa
By Gay Clark Jennings — January 27, 2014
(RNS) Western Christians cannot fix the homophobia that's currently gripping Nigeria, Uganda, or other African countries. We can, however, stand in solidarity with progressive Africans and support their efforts to teach new ways of interpreting the Bible and understanding sexuality.
State Department names Boko Haram a terrorist organization
By Katherine Burgess — November 14, 2013
(RNS) Boko Haram, which means “Western education is forbidden,” is responsible for thousands of deaths in northeast and central Nigeria, according to the State Department.
Muslims condemn savage attack on British soldier
By Trevor Grundy — May 23, 2013
LONDON (RNS) "They have done a cowardly, barbaric act," said Imam Ajmal Masroor of the Islamic Society of Britain. "They have insulted God and Islam. They are low vile scum.