Pope Francis Laments Victims Of Recent Terrorist Massacre In Northeastern Nigeria

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd December, 2020) Pope Frances on Wednesday said he was praying for dozens of villagers brutally killed by Boko Haram terrorists in northeastern Nigeria last week, lamenting their deaths.

Violent killings occurred on Saturday, when militants on motorcycles slaughtered at least 110 farmers and abducted several women working in rice fields in the Jere Local Government Area in the northeastern Nigerian state of Borno, which is believed the epicenter of the terrorist threat for the Western African nations, as the Boko Haram jihadist group is based there.

"I want to assure my prayers for Nigeria, where blood has unfortunately been spilled once more in a terrorist attack," Pope Francis said during Wednesday General Audience.

The Boko Haram organization on Tuesday reportedly released a video claiming responsibility for the bloodshed.

The group has operated in the north-east Nigeria and in several other Western African states, conducting numerous deadly attacks and abductions, since it initiated an Islamic insurgency in 2009. The group pledges allegiance to the Islamic State (terrorist organization, banned in Russia).