Archbishop Samuel Kleda The Church in Cameroon said shots were fired at the residence of Archbishop Samuel Kleda, president of the bishops’ conference, after he criticised policies by the government of President Paul Biya.
“Projectiles were shot at the Archdiocese of Douala headquarters, breaking its windows,” the local vicar general Msgr Dieudonne Bayemeg said in a statement. “There were no human injuries, and the police arrived immediately, accompanied by the archbishop, cathedral rector and household guards.”
The statement, issued after the late-evening attack earlier this month, said the bullets hit the room of the archdiocesan finance officer, Msgr Alan Nibile, who threw himself on the floor.
It added that inquiries were continuing and said Catholics in the central African state had been asked to “pray and remain calm”.
Meanwhile, the Actualite du Cameroun news agency described the attack as an “attempted assassination” and said it was widely believed it was linked to Archbishop Kleda’s demands for a government dialogue with separatist groups and for President Biya not to seek re-election.
Cross-border Islamist insurgents from Nigeria-based Boko Haram have targeted Catholic clergy and killed hundreds of police, troops and civilians in Cameroon’s Far North region since allying with Islamic State in March 2015.