Attacks mar Christmas celebrations

Abu Sayyaf has been blamed for several bomb attacks on Roman Catholic cathedral in Jolo since early 2000s [AFP]

Attacks mar Christmas celebrations

Blasts in southern Philippines and Nigerian city of Jos spoil Christmas festivities as church leaders call for peace.

Last Modified:25 Dec 2010 06:34 GMT

Fresh attacks against Christians have marred Christmas festivities as church leaders condemned religious persecution and called for global peace and reconciliation.

As Christian leaders highlighted the plight of believers facing the threat of attacks around the world, a bomb in a church during Christmas mass in the southern Philippines on Saturday wounded 11 people, including a priest.

Military officials would not immediately name any suspects in the blast on Jolo island, but the island is a known bastion of the Abu Sayyaf, an al-Qaeda-linked group, blamed for deadly attacks in the Philippines and for kidnapping priests and nuns.

"There is a possibility that this could be the handiwork of the Abu Sayyaf because they have been perpetrating similar attacks against the Catholic church," Lieutenant Randolph Cabangbang, a military spokesman, said.

"We've placed our troops on alert to prevent similar attacks on churches, shopping malls, parks and transport terminals," he added.

Nigeria attack

In the northern Nigerian city of Kano, gunmen on Friday attacked a church during Christmas Eve services but were fought off by soldiers, officials said.

No one was hurt in the incident, but in the central Nigerian city of Jos the same day, an explosion killed at least 11 people and wounded another eight, police said.

Gregory Yenlong, the information commissioner of Plateau State, of which Jos is the capital, said there had been rumours of attacks aimed at disrupting Christmas celebrations in recent days.

However, there was no immediate indication that the two incidents were linked and police in Jos cautioned that the cause of the explosion had not yet been established.

The attack "is unfortunate, especially at this time when we want to ensure sustainable peace in the state,'' Yenlong said.

Jos is the epicentre of religious violence in Nigeria's "middle belt,'' where dozens of ethnic groups vie for political and economic control. The violence often falls along religious lines and has claimed more than 500 lives this year.

The latest violence came as an audio-taped threat directed to "the unbeliever and Christian countries celebrating Christmas" would be targeted for attacks, the SITE monitoring group said on Friday.

The recording bore the voice of a member of the Shumukh al-Islam forum, said the US-based monitor.

In Iraq, despite al-Qaeda threats, worshippers gathered to mark Christmas Eve at the Saint Joseph church in central Baghdad, less than two months after a deadly attack at another church in the city.

'True brotherhood'

In Rome, Pope Benedict XVI prayed for God to punish the world's "oppressors" and bring about "true brotherhood" between peoples in his traditional Christmas message in Saint Peter's Basilica.

"Lord make your promise come finally true. Break the rods of the oppressors. Burn the tramping boots. Let the time of the garments rolled in blood come to an end," Benedict said at the Christmas Eve mass in the Basilica.

In Britain, the leader of the world's Anglicans urged people to remember those across the globe who face persecution because of their Christian faith. Rowan Williams' message was for his Christmas Day sermon, excerpts of which were released early on Saturday.

"We may feel powerless to help; yet we should also know that people in such circumstances are strengthened simply by knowing they have not been forgotten," said the Archbishop of Canterbury.

The sense of Christmas cheer was being sorely tested in parts of Europe where freezing temperatures have caused transport chaos, with thousands of travellers forced to spend the night in trains, on ferries or in airports as the snow piled up.

Source:Agencies / Bulgaria Today