A diocese in Nigeria’s Kaduna State announced the liberation of a priest abducted in February.
The Diocese of Kafanchan said Fr Nathaniel Asuwaye, parish priest of Holy Trinity Parish in Karku, was released on 12 May, three months after gunmen kidnapped him in a raid on 7 February in which three people died.
The diocesan chancellor Fr Jacob Shanet confirmed that Fr Asuwaye was in a stable condition and receiving medical care. He attributed the priest’s safe return to the Christian community’s prayers and May devotions.
On behalf of Bishop Julius Yakub Kundi of Kafanchan, he expressed gratitude to the faithful for their spiritual support during the ordeal.
According to statistics published by the Nigerian Catholic Bishops’ Conference, between 2015 and 2025 at least 212 priests were kidnapped across 41 dioceses. There are now believed to be two priests still held by kidnappers.
According to the International Society for Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law, a Catholic-inspired NGO that tracks religious persecution in Nigeria, violence has claimed 185,000 Christian lives since 2009, while 60,000 moderate Muslims have also been killed. It said over 7,000 Christians were killed in seven months of 2025.
A US-based lobby group accused Nigeria’s National Security Advisor Nuhu Ribadu of disguising the scale of killings and insecurity in Nigeria during meetings with officials in Washington.
The group accused the Nigerian government of doing more to defend its image abroad than to address insecurity and preventing further bloodshed across the country.
The lobbying firm Von Batten-Montague-York claimed Ribadu gave US officials the impression that Christians in Nigeria were safe despite continuing attacks across several communities.
In a social media post, it said more than 8,500 Catholics have been killed, 40 Catholic priests kidnapped or killed and 90 Catholic churches destroyed since President Bola Tinubu took office in 2023.
It also alleged that militant herdsmen had killed 13 Christians even while Ribadu was in talks with Vice President J.D. Vance.
Nigerian officials insisted that the talks were part of efforts to strengthen bilateral cooperation with the US, particularly military support in responding to insecurity in parts of the country.
“Well, part of the NSA’s engagements is to strengthen the cooperation between the US and Nigeria, over the insecurity issue. Yes, there are killings, but that is not to suggest that the government is closing its eyes to it,” said a senior government official, who asked not to be named.
“The NSA’s visit is to deepen the cooperation with the American government to stop it, and we can all see what was achieved a few days back with the elimination of a high-ranking ISIS member in Borno State with the cooperation of the US government.”
Dr Karl Von Batten of Von Batten-Montague-York also said he had attended meetings involving allies of former Nigerian Vice President Atiku Abubakar and US officials, during which insecurity and election integrity were topics of discussion, insisting that violence in Nigeria affects both Christians and Muslims.
Von Batten maintained that Nigeria needed leadership capable of restoring peace, rebuilding trust and uniting citizens across regional and religious divides.