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Nigeria: Two Abducted Methodist Pastors Remain in Captivity Despite Ransom Payment

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – Two United Methodist Church pastors in Nigeria’s Taraba state remain in captivity, and in danger of being killed, despite the UMC’s payment of a ransom demanded by the Islamic terrorists who abducted them on Dec. 19, Morning Star News (MSN) reports. Rights groups have ranked Nigeria number one in the world for the numbers of Christians murdered and kidnapped by Islamic jihadists.

Rev. Elkanah Ayuba and the Rev. Simon Ezra of the UMC were among at least 20 people kidnapped on Dec. 19 from Pupule Town, Yorro County in Taraba state, Rev. Micah Dopa, president of the Southern Conference of the UMC, told MSN.

“As a Body of Christ, we mobilized and paid 11 million naira for our members to be released, but the terrorists decided to release only the Muslim victims in their custody,” Pastor Dopa said in a Jan. 4 statement. “It is clear to say that the terrorists’ activities are a plot to erase Christians in the area.”

Area resident Charles Tolmava added in a separate statement to MSN: “The demands of the bandits are high, as they are demanding millions of naira. The church is finding it difficult to meet the demand of the terrorists.”

A video recorded three days after the Dec. 19 abduction, shows Pastor Ayuba blindfolded with captors behind him saying: “There’s the need for the government to dialogue with our captors and find a lasting solution to this menace. We believe that unless the government takes steps towards finding a solution to this problem for peace to reign, unless this is done in the next few days, we’ll be killed.”