Nigeria: Church member dies in violence

Recent violence near the Nigerian city of Jos claimed the life of Theodore Essemo Ebulla. The 34-year-old native of Cameroon had preached in a rural Nigerian village and was returning to the School of Biblical Studies in Jos when he encountered a group of rioting Muslims who killed him with machetes, said Steven Worley, a missionary who works with the school.
South of Jos, Okon Mkpong, a longtime church leader in Nigeria, wasreleased unharmed by his kidnappers after nearly 12 days in captivity.Mkpong was abducted from his home Feb. 11. The kidnappers demanded aransom, and family members in Nigeria negotiated for his release.
Nearly two months after Mkpong’s abduction, another minister, JacobAchinefu, was kidnapped while driving a van for the Nigerian Instituteof Arts and Theological Studies. He was released after seven days incaptivity, but was beaten by his captors. Achinefu was treated at ahospital in Port Harcourt, Nigeria.
Friends are attempting to secure a visa for him to travel to the U.S. for additional treatment.