Cameroon: Missionary priests and nun kidnapped

Two Italian priests and a Canadian nun were kidnapped in Cameroon last night, Vatican Radio reported last night. Two groups of armed men raided the houses where they lived in Maroura parish in the north of the country about 2am local time (1am GMT).

The priests have been named as Fr Giampaolo Marta and Fr Gianantonio Allegri, from the diocese of Vicenza in northeast Italy. The nun has not been identified yet.

The Italian embassy in Yaounde is working to resolve the situation. Commentators have expressed fears that the kidnappings could have been carried out by Boko Haram Islamist militants, who have killed thousands of people in northern Nigeria, which borders the north of Cameroon.