AFRICA/NIGER - Assault on the village where the first local Catholic communities were born: at least 5 dead and the desecration of the church NIGER 2021-05-14
Niamey (Agenzia Fides) - In Niger, the celebration of the conclusion of Ramadan, Aid el Fitr, was celebrated yesterday. In the capital, Niamey, everything took place in the calm and serenity of this day of prayer and family celebration. Only a long black-out accompanied a good part of the day , Fr. Mauro Armanino, missionary of the Societies of African Missions (SMA), who works in Niamey told Fides. The real and dramatic black-up occurred in the village of Fangio, about 300 kilometers from Niamey, in the Songhay-Zerma area, where the country s first Catholic communities were born. The first Nigerian Catholic to be baptized, Antoine Douramane, came from this area. It was he who founded the community in Fangio , says Fr. Armanino reporting yet another attack by jihadist groups against Niger rural communities