Stefan J. Bos on LinkedIn: EU Membership Talks With War-torn Ukraine (2024)

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BREAKING: Kidnapped #Nigerian Pastor And Wife Facing Death (Worthy News Mission Watch)By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News ABUJA (Worthy News)— Christians have appealed for prayers as a new video apparently posted by the Islamic Boko Haram group shows Nigerian Pastor Paul Musa wearing an orange jumpsuit and kneeling in front of a masked gunman, pleading for his life and that of his wife. In the fifteen-second video shared with Worthy News, Paul says that unless Boko Haram’s ransom demands are met by the end of the week, then “this will be for our lives.”Earlier on Sunday, May 5, Musa, 59, and his wife Ruth, 50, also appeared in a hostage video uploaded by Boko Haram, designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the U.S. Department of State. Both pastors of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN) denomination in Borno state in northeast Nigeria were kidnapped in March last year and haven’t been heard from publicly since the recent video footage. “Please pray for Pastor Musa,” evangelist and farmer Paul Jongas told Worthy News. While the latest video is brief, the previous footage showed the couple extensively filmed in Muslim clothing with a Boko Haram flag in the background. Both speak to the camera, appealing for help to secure their release.In the lengthy video, Paul speaks first in both English and the Hausa language, saying: “Good morning brethren, I, Reverend Paul Musa, Lead Pastor of COCIN LCC Gamboru Ngala, Borno, Nigeria, am sending this message to you that it was on that day 14th of March 2023 when we were kidnapped.He adds: “I and my wife need help. We need help from the government of Nigeria, from the Christian citizens of Nigeria, which is CAN (Christian Association of Nigeria), and the Christian body of leaders.”The pastor tells “The government of Nigeria – where is the assistance? Where is the concern that you have about the people’s lives? You have forgotten about us and we also need your help.”Paul also says in the video that “he and his wife are not physically healthy and that both had served in church leadership for almost 29 years.”In the same video, Ruth speaks in Hausa, saying: “The terrorists kidnapped us from 14 March 2023 to today, 30 April 2024. I’m pleading with the Nigerian government to help us.”She adds, "I am 50 years old. We have been working in the church for 29 years. We have been begging with no answer; help us, help us.”The video closes with a short segment filmed separately, in which Rev Paul says: “I could lose my life, help me, and pay my ransom. Perhaps they will release me; please help me. Please let it be quick.“He claims, "This is the last opportunity I have been given to talk to you. After this, you might not hear my voice again. Thank you!”It wasn’t clear whether the church was talking about a ransom. Officials were reluctant to pay money amid mounting kidnappings in the country where thousands of Christians were killed in recent years.

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