Egypt Mourns 25 Christians Killed In Massive Church Bombing

Egypt’s Coptic community held a funeral service on Monday for 25 Christians killed in a bombing the previous day at a church next to the main cathedral in Cairo — one of the deadliest attacks targeting the country’s religious minority in recent memory.

The bomb went off during Sunday Mass at a chapel adjacent to St. Mark’s Cathedral, seat of the ancient Coptic Orthodox church. No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack.

The coffins of the victims were laid in front of the altar, with their names displayed on the side facing the congregation and on the church walls.

Candles and large big crosses made of white roses stood next to the coffins.

The spiritual leader of Egypt’s Orthodox Christians, Pope Tawadros II, led the service. At one point, the visibly distraught pontiff leaned on his staff and quietly prayed in front of the coffins. He had cut short a visit to Greece and flew home on Sunday after the bombing.

“God, protect us and your people from the conspiracies of the evil ones,” prayed the Coptic pope, who venerated the coffins with incense.

Only victims’ relatives were allowed to attend the service at the Virgin Mary and St. Athanasius church in the eastern Cairo suburb of Nasr City. Some of them screamed out in grief or shouted out a victim’s name, while the rest quietly sobbed or sat somberly during the service.

Outside the church, scores scuffled with security forces when they were barred from attending the service. An unspecified number of arrests were made, several witnesses said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they feared for their safety.

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http://dailytimes.ng/egypt-mourns-25-christians-killed-massive-church-bombing/

World Bank Launches Massive Solar Energy Programme In Nigeria

The International Finance Corporation, IFC, a member of the World Bank group in collaboration with the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) is facilitating a massive solar energy programme, targeting Small and Medium Scale businesses across the country.

Under the initiative, the Financial Institution with the DFID would deploy off-grid and embedded solar systems in commercial and industrial sectors in Nigeria.

Providing insight into the project, country manager IFC, Eme Essien Lore, at a media briefing in Lagos, yesterday, said a number of financial institutions in Nigeria would be given incentives to provide finances for the programme.

She said studies would be conducted to fully understand the challenges that had stalled similar initiative in the past.

Lore stated that IFC is leading an initiative, creating and facilitating solutions to help increase access to energy at the home and corporate levels in Nigeria.

Credit:

http://leadership.ng/business/551372/world-bank-launches-massive-solar-energy-programme-in-nigeria

Army Uncovers Massive Illegal Oil Bunkering Site

Nigerian Army has uncovered a massive illegal oil bunkering site barely two weeks after heightened security operations in the area. And strangely too, the location is about one kilometre from the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Thirteen suspects were arrested.

According to the Commander of 2 Brigade of the Nigerian Army, Port Harcourt, Brig.-Gen. Stevenson Olabanji, who broke the news, thousands of litres of illegally refined diesel were discovered at the site. He said Army operatives were immediately deployed to the site at Makoba Beach, after a tip-off. It was gathered that the site is also about two kilometres away from the Rivers State Government House.

Olabanji said: “About 16:40 hours on Monday, we got an information that some illegal bunkering activities were going on along Makoba Beach. On arrival at the area, our personnel discovered illegal activities including bunkering of illegally refined petroleum products and lifting of diesel to local boats…”

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