SAA event in Nigeria on Tue 18th November 2025

Gunmen stormed a church in central Nigeria on Tuesday evening, killing at least two people and abducting the pastor along with several worshippers, police and local witnesses said. The attack comes just days after 25 schoolgirls were kidnapped from a boarding school, adding to growing concerns about security in the country.The assault took place around 6 p.m. in the town of Eruku. Police spokesperson Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi said officers responding to gunfire found one victim inside the church and another in nearby bushes. Witnesses, however, said they counted at least three church members dead, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.“They rounded up some worshippers, including the pastor, and took them into the bush,” parishioner Joseph Bitrus told, without specifying the number of abducted people.A video verified by Reuters shows the moment the Christ Apostolic Church service was interrupted by gunfire, with worshippers fleeing for safety as armed men entered the building and seized belongings.The attack intensifies pressure on the Nigerian government, already under scrutiny from U.S. President Donald Trump, who recently threatened military action over what he described as persecution of Christians.Nigeria continues to face multiple security crises — including Islamist insurgency in the northeast, armed gangs in the northwest, and deadly clashes between herders and farmers in the central region.Meanwhile, authorities are still searching for the schoolgirls abducted on Monday in northwestern Kebbi state. Vice President Kashim Shettima is expected to meet with officials and relatives of the missing students when he visits the state on Wednesday.