The bishop of the Diocese of Kafanchan in Kaduna State, Nigeria, has expressed his “deep sorrow and righteous indignation” over the abduction and subsequent murder of one of his priests. Fr Sylvester Okechukwu was abducted from his residence on 4 March, and found murdered in the early hours of 5 March. The Diocese of Kafanchan has seen at least one pastoral agent murdered each year since 2021.

It is with profound sadness that ACN has received the tragic news of the brutal murder of Father Donald Martin Ye Naing Win, a 44-year-old priest of the Catholic Archdiocese of Mandalay, in central Myanmar. His lifeless body, mutilated and bearing numerous stab wounds, was found by members of his community on Friday morning in the grounds of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, where he served.