Extremists have captured another Catholic priest in Nigeria, bringing the number of clerics kidnapped in the country this year to four.<br>The gunmen who took Fr Basil Gbuzuo have not contacted the Church, according to a statement by Onitsha Archdiocese sent to Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).<br>Fr Prudentius Aroh, chancellor of the Archdiocese of Onitsha, wrote that Archbishop Valerian Maduka Okeke of Onitsha was inviting “all Christ's faithful and all men and women of good will to earnestly pray for the quick and safe release of the priest as we intensify our efforts to ensure his freedom”.<br>Fr Aroh added: “We commend our brother to the powerful intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Priests, for his speedy release from the hands of his kidnappers.”<br>Fr Gbuzuo is the fourth priest to have been kidnapped in Nigeria this year, but the other three – two Claretian missionaries and a parish priest from Benin City Archdiocese – have already been released.<br>Three priests kidnapped in the country in previous years – one in 2019 and two in 2022 – are still missing.<br>In 2023, Nigeria topped the list of countries with cases of abducted priests and religious with 28 incidents in total, including three Sisters.<br>ACN has called for the immediate and unconditional release of Fr Gbuzuo, joining its voice with those of Nigerian Church leaders demanding that the government step up security in the African nation.
<em>(Photo courtesy of Aid to the Church in Need)</em>
