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2 Italian Priests and a Canadian Nun Are Abducted in Cameroon 2 Italian Priests and a Canadian Nun Are Abducted in Cameroon
(about 3 hours later)
ROME — Two Italian priests and a Canadian nun were abducted early Saturday from their mission in northern Cameroon, the Italian government and Vatican officials said.ROME — Two Italian priests and a Canadian nun were abducted early Saturday from their mission in northern Cameroon, the Italian government and Vatican officials said.
The Italian Foreign Ministry identified the priests as Giampaolo Marta and Gianantonio Allegri. A Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Ciro Benedettini, said the priests were from the Vicenza diocese in northern Italy.The Italian Foreign Ministry identified the priests as Giampaolo Marta and Gianantonio Allegri. A Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Ciro Benedettini, said the priests were from the Vicenza diocese in northern Italy.
Bishop Phillippe Stevens of the parish of Maroua, Cameroon, where the kidnapping took place, identified the nun as Gilberte Bissiere, according to Reuters. Bishop Stevens said the three were taken by “unknown people” who broke open the doors of their residences. Bishop Phillippe Stevens of the parish of Maroua, Cameroon, identified the nun as Gilberte Bissiere, Reuters said. He said the three were taken by “unknown people” who broke open the doors of their residences.
The Rev. Henri Djongang, the vicar general of Maroua, said the kidnapping took place near Maroua in the village of Tchéré, 37 miles from the border with Nigeria.
The kidnappers arrived in two cars and on five motorcycles, and “there were many of them,” Father Djongang said. People nearby heard the sounds of a struggle, and the nun “cried out a lot,” he said.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the kidnappings, although Boko Haram, an Islamist militant group based in Nigeria, has operated in the area.No one immediately claimed responsibility for the kidnappings, although Boko Haram, an Islamist militant group based in Nigeria, has operated in the area.
“It has not been excluded that the culprits of the kidnapping could belong to the Islamic militia Boko Haram,” said Vatican Radio, the Vatican’s news outlet.“It has not been excluded that the culprits of the kidnapping could belong to the Islamic militia Boko Haram,” said Vatican Radio, the Vatican’s news outlet.
A Foreign Ministry press officer said the ministry’s website cautions against traveling in the area, about 20 miles from the border with Nigeria, “in consideration of the risk of kidnappings due to presence of jihadist elements coming from Nigeria.” An Italian Foreign Ministry press officer said the ministry’s website cautions against traveling in the area, “in consideration of the risk of kidnappings due to presence of jihadist elements coming from Nigeria.”
Father Benedettini said that Pope Francis was informed early Saturday about the abductions, and that the pope was praying for the three who had been taken.Father Benedettini said that Pope Francis was informed early Saturday about the abductions, and that the pope was praying for the three who had been taken.
According to Reuters, Father Allegri had written to his home diocese last month saying that the local authorities had advised him to travel with a police escort. The priests “had been there for many years,” Father Djongang said. “They were very kind. They liked the population, and they were well liked by the people, too. They helped a lot with the children, in the schools. They helped train teachers.”
“Even if on the surface you do not notice anything in particular that is alarming, it is palpable in our feelings and our conversations,” he wrote in the letter, which was posted on the diocesan website, Reuters reported. He said he suspected Boko Haram because it was “the same method” they used in the kidnapping of a French priest, the Rev. Georges Vandenbeusch, in the same region in November. He was freed in late December.
Boko Haram’s insurgency has killed hundreds of Nigerian citizens in a campaign to undermine Nigeria’s central government. The group seeks to establish an Islamic state in northern Nigeria, which borders Cameroon. Boko Haram’s insurgency has killed hundreds of Nigerian citizens in a campaign to undermine Nigeria’s central government.
The group seized a French family of seven in northern Cameroon in February 2013 and released them in April.
The Rev. Georges Vandenbeusch, a French priest, was captured by armed men, said to be members of Boko Haram, in the same region in November. He was freed in late December.