Tanzania: another Catholic priest killed

Fr Evarist Mushi

A Catholic priest was murdered in Zanzibar yesterday. Fr Evarist Mushi, 55, was shot in his car at close range at 7am shortly before he was due to celebrate Mass at Zanzibar's Catholic Cathedral.

"We have no idea why Fr Evarist was killed, we are waiting to hear the results of the police enquiry", Bishop Augustine Shao, Catholic Bishop of Zanzibar, told Fides.

"Fr Evarist was killed at 7am yesterday morning. He had just arrived at Zanzibar's Catholic Cathedral, St Joseph's, to celebrate Sunday Mass. Before he could even alight from the car two men on a motorbike approached him and the one seated at the back opened fire shooting three times. " said Bishop Shao.

The Bishop said he suspects that the priest's murder may be connected with other local events. He said: "Recently explicit assassination threats against bishops and priests were seen in local newspapers. At Christmas, another local priest, Fr Ambrose Mkenda was seriously injured in an ambush. Fr Ambrose is still recovering from his wounds in hospital. Last year, 2012, three Catholic churches and several churches of other Christian denominations in Zanzibar, were set on fire. We have no ides of the size of the group targeting the island's Christians, but it would appear to be large" the Bishop
concluded.

Local police say they have arrested three persons suspected of involvement in the killing.

Source: Fides