Tag: Mahamadou Issoufou

Abduction of Italian priest shocks Niger

September 20, 2018 Niger Kidnapping, Mahamadou Issoufou, Missionaries, Niamey, Niger, Pier Luigi Maccalli

Italian priest Pier Luigi Maccalli, freed in Mali, worked in SW Niger till his kidnap in Sep 2018

In Niger, the abduction of an Italian priest in the southwest of the country has left the communities he served for 11 years in shock and sorrow. Fr. Pier Luigi Maccalli, 57, was kidnapped by unknown armed men on Monday night in his parish of Bamoanga, about 125km from the . . . Read More

Jeff Woodke’s wife releases third video plea for news of her husband

June 29, 2018 Niger Abalak, Jeff Woodke, Kidnapping, Mahamadou Issoufou, Niger, Sahel

Jeff Woodke (Photo: Woodke's Facebook page)

The wife of an American missionary abducted 20 months ago in Africa’s Sahel region has put out a new video pleading for his safe return. In the 4’10’’ footage released on Tuesday (26 June), in French, Els Woodke reiterated her despair and desire to be in touch with her husband’s . . . Read More

US missionary, captive for 20 months, is alive, reports Niger’s president

June 7, 2018 Niger Abalak, Jeff Woodke, Mahamadou Issoufou, MUJAO, Niger, Sahel, West Africa

A US missionary kidnapped in Niger in October 2016 is alive, according to the West African nation’s president. Jeff Woodke, who worked for Jeunesse en Mission Entraide et Developpement (JEMED) was abducted by unknown assailants late in the evening of Friday 14 October, 2016, from the town of Abalak in . . . Read More

Niger’s churches rebuilt, but West African nation ‘no longer tolerant’

January 24, 2018 Niger Charlie Hebdo, Mahamadou Issoufou, Niamey, Niger, Sahel, Trauma, West Africa

In Niger new buildings have emerged from the rubble of churches destroyed three years ago in the aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris. On the weekend of 16-17 January, 2015, more than 70 churches were ransacked by hundreds of angry Islamists, who were said to be angered at . . . Read More

‘We are in a catastrophe’

September 23, 2016 Ban Ki-moon, Boko Haram, Cameroon, Chad, Diffa, Lake Chad, London, Mahamadou Issoufou, New York, Niger, Nigeria, Samuel Dali, Sub-Saharan Africa, UN

Leaders of Africa’s Lake Chad Basin countries affected by Boko Haram’s intensifying insurgency over the past two weeks are calling on the international community to act urgently against the region’s ongoing humanitarian “catastrophe”. Presidents Muhammadu Buhari (Nigeria), Mahamadou Issoufou (Niger), Idriss Deby Itno (Chad) and Paul Biya (Cameroon) are scheduled . . . Read More

Niger: a year after 70 churches destroyed in anti-‘Charlie’ riots

January 20, 2016 Niger Charlie Hebdo, Islamic extremism, Mahamadou Issoufou, Niamey, West Africa, Zinder

Demolishing Boukoki’s EERN church, damaged in the anti-Charlie’ riots in 2015, ahead of its rebuildingWorld Watch Monitor A year has passed since the churches in the West African country of Niger experienced the worst attacks in their history, in the aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris. On . . . Read More

Niger churches ‘abandoned’ after Charlie Hebdo destruction

July 23, 2015 Niger Baptists, Boko Haram, Charlie Hebdo, Churches, Islamic extremism, Mahamadou Issoufou, Niamey, Niger, Prophet Muhammad, Protestants, Trauma, West Africa, Zinder

In the aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris, the churches in the predominantly Muslim West African nation of Niger experienced the worst attacks in their history. On the weekend of 16-17 January, hundreds of angry Islamists attacked and ransacked dozens of properties and churches, shouting “Allahu Akbar” (“Allah . . . Read More

Recent violence in Niger shows growing intolerance among religious groups

January 28, 2015 Niger Boko Haram, Charlie Hebdo, Churches, Islamic extremism, Mahamadou Issoufou, Maradi, Niamey, Protestants, Sahel, Salafism, Zinder

Mixed emotions were evident as members of the Christian community in Niger gathered for their services on Sunday, 25 January, 2015. Some were full of joy to get back to church; others could barely hide their sorrow. A week ago, the church bells remained silent. Ten people died during that . . . Read More

70+ churches destroyed as ‘anti-Charlie’ protests spread in Niger

January 20, 2015 Niger Agadez, Charlie Hebdo, Churches, Islamic extremism, Mahamadou Issoufou, Maradi, Niamey, Niger, Zinder

The Christian community in Niger says it is in shock in the wake of weekend violence that has claimed the lives of ten people and led to the destruction of dozens of places of worship and Christian homes. The protest, which started in the country’s second city, Zinder, on Friday . . . Read More

Churches burned down over anti-Charlie Hebdo demonstration in Niger

January 15, 2015 Niger Boko Haram, Charlie Hebdo, Mahamadou Issoufou, Maradi, MUJAO, Niger, West Africa, Zinder

A 2013 church service in Niger.Courtesy Open Doors International At least five churches in southeastern Niger were ransacked and burned down Friday by hundreds of Islamist demonstrators angered by a cartoon published by the French magazine Charlie Hebdo. According to local sources contacted by World Watch Monitor, hundreds of . . . Read More

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