Ireland’s president denounced a deadly attack on a Catholic church in Nigeria on Pentecost Sunday on Tuesday.
“That such an attack was undertaken in a house of worship is a source of particular condemnation, as does any attempt to blame pastoral peoples who are among the main victims of the repercussions of climate change,” Michael D. Higgins said in a statement on June 7.
He added: “The solidarity of us all, as peoples of the world, is owed to all those impacted not only by this horrible event but in the struggle by the most vulnerable on whom the consequences of climate change have been inflicted.”
Higgins said that the failure to address food security issues in Africa “has brought us to a point of crisis.”
The Irish president spoke out days after the Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need appealed to world leaders to denounce the attack.
Ireland has deep connections with Nigeria, thanks to the efforts of Irish Catholic missionaries. The two nations share a patron saint, St. Patrick, and there is a Nigerian community in Ireland.
In an attack on June 5, unidentified gunmen opened fire on Catholic worshipers attending Pentecost celebrations at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State, in southwestern Nigeria.
According to initial estimates, more than 50 people were murdered, including children, and many more were injured. On June 6, Reuters reported that there was no official death toll.
On June 7, the local Catholic Diocese of Ondo notified the Associated Press that at least 38 people were killed in the attack, including five children, with many more presumably still missing.
According to Bishop Jude Ayodeji Arogundade of Ondo, a number of the injured are still awaiting medical attention, while 80 to 90 patients are presently in stable condition.
He offered his condolences for the numerous men, women, and children who died, including the parents of a diocese seminarian.
“For some people who think that they want to match our goodness with their own evil, they shouldn’t forget that good will always triumph, the light will always triumph over darkness,” Arogundade said.
“Our people are a people of faith,” he commented. “They are still calling on God, on the name of God. Some will tell you that it could have been worse if not for God.”
Other countries have also spoken out against the June 5 massacre.
France’s Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs said that the country “condemns in the strongest terms the attack perpetrated on Sunday June 5 by armed men against a church during a service in Owo in Ondo State, south-west Nigeria, which caused several dozen victims.”
“France offers its condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims of this heinous crime. She wishes a speedy recovery to those injured,” it said, calling for the perpetrators to be identified and brought to justice.
The spiritual head of the international Anglican Communion, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, posted a condolence message on his Facebook page, assuring victims of his prayers.
President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria denounced the “heinous act,” adding “only fiends from the nether place” could have perpetrated it.
In the aftermath of what he called “unspeakable violence,” Pope Francis has also voiced his grief. The pope said he was praying for the victims as well as the attackers’ conversion.