Attack in Nigeria: Minister Terzi's reaction

ROME, Italy, September 25, 2012/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- “This latest in a long series of killings has shaken all of us, and I most firmly condemn it”, was Minister for Foreign Affairs Giulio Terzi's reaction to the news this morning of an attack on the Catholic Cathedral of St. John in northeast Nigeria that left many dead and wounded in its wake.

Terzi expressed his “deep concern over the episode, which confirms the absolute need for the entire international community to intensify its efforts at avoiding the repetition of similar hateful acts and at encouraging spread of a culture of tolerance and mutual respect”.

Italy is making a particularly significant contribution in this context by promoting major initiatives on behalf of religious freedom and interfaith dialogue in various international forums. Minister Terzi and Jordanian foreign minister Nasser Judeh will co-chair an international conference on civil society and human rights education as a tool for disseminating religious tolerance, to be held on 27 September in the margins of the UN General Assembly. The event aims to foster religious tolerance and the defence of freedom of religion and beliefs (FORB) and religious minorities.