by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – As Islamic jihadists continue a relentless campaign of murder, abductions, and displacement against Christians in northern Nigeria, communities of local believers are joining together to pray and to support one another, including with finances to pay extortionate ransoms for kidnapped loved ones, International Christian Concern (ICC) reports.
“Islamic Fulani extremists and other groups are increasingly abducting Christians and demanding significant ransoms, putting immense pressure on families and local communities,” ICC said in its report. “In response, Christians are raising awareness of the abductions in Kaduna and Niger states and mobilizing assistance for those affected,” ICC said.
Citing an example that illustrates the desperate situation, ICC reports that the family of Emmanuel Nyasom, Jr., 54, is seeking help after kidnappers increased their ransom demand to 90 million Naira (about $53,000). A father of eight children, Nyasom was kidnapped from his farm near Kontagora in Niger state on October 31.
Nigeria ranks number one in the world for the number of Christians murdered and/or kidnapped on account of their faith. More Christians are murdered in Nigeria than in the rest of the world combined, the Open Doors international Christian advocacy organization reports.
In a current website statement about the persecution of Christians in Nigeria, Open Doors reports: “Christians in Nigeria, particularly in the Muslim-majority north, continue to live under immense pressure and to be terrorized with devastating impunity by Islamic militants and armed ‘bandits.’The attacks are often brutal in nature and can involve destruction of properties, abductions for ransom, sexual violence and death.”
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
More Worthy News
Colombia has formally recognized Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, becoming only the second nation in the world after the United States to do so.
Syria and Russia have reached an agreement that will strip Moscow of exclusive control over two strategic military bases on Syria’s Mediterranean coast, marking a major shift in Russia’s Middle East military presence following the collapse of the Bashar al-Assad government.
President Donald Trump on Monday ordered a sweeping overhaul of federal childhood vaccine recommendations, reducing the number of diseases for which vaccines are universally recommended while directing health officials to give parents greater control over when and how their children receive immunizations.
President Donald Trump scored a significant legal victory Monday in his $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the BBC after a federal judge allowed him to amend his complaint and effectively wiped out the British broadcaster’s pending attempt to have the case dismissed.
A Syrian court on Tuesday sentenced ousted President Bashar al-Assad to death in absentia, marking the first criminal conviction against the former dictator since his government collapsed in December 2024.
A Vietnamese court has sentenced Montagnard Protestant pastor Y Nuen Ayun to seven and a half years in prison on charges of “undermining the national unity policy,” trial observers told Worthy News on Monday.
Russian authorities say at least 13 people were killed and 39 others wounded Monday in Ukrainian drone attacks on an industrial city about 900 kilometers, or 600 miles, east of Moscow. The latest strikes signaled a further escalation of Ukraine’s campaign of air attacks deep inside Russia.