World Tour - Terrorist attack kills priest in Pakistan

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Coming up next on The World and Everything in It: WORLD tour with our reporter in Africa, Onize Ohikere.

ONIZE OHIKERE, REPORTER: Delegation meets with military junta—We start today in West Africa.

AUDIO: [Man speaking French]

The military junta that took over Burkina Faso last week has declared its top commander the country’s new president. It also announced a restoration of the constitution. Speaking on state television Monday, a junta spokesman said that would ensure continuity until the appointment of “transitional bodies.”

Later that day, a delegation from the Economic Community of West African States met with junta leaders. Shirley Ayorkor Botchway is Ghana’s foreign minister.

BOTCHWAY: The discussions were very frank, they seemed very open to the suggestions and proposals that we made to them. For us it’s a good sign.

The African Union has suspended Burkina Faso from all its activities since the coup. Its members will meet Thursday to consider sanctions … a step taken against other military regimes that recently took over Mali and Guinea.

Priest killed in Pakistan—Next we go to Southeast Asia.

AUDIO: [Sounds of people crying, camera shutters]

Christians in Pakistan held a funeral Monday for a priest murdered on his way home from mass.

William Siraj was driving with two other priests in the northwest city of Peshawar on Sunday when two men attacked them.

AUDIO: [Man speaking Urdu]

Church leaders are calling the attack a terrorist incident. No group has claimed responsibility.

But militant attacks have increased since the Pakistani Taliban ended a cease-fire with the government last month. The group has grown increasingly bold since the Taliban takeover in neighboring Afghanistan.

Terror attacks are a constant threat to Christians in Pakistan. Siraj’s funeral was held in the same church where a bombing killed 70 worshippers and injured 100 others in 2013. More than 3,000 people attended the service.

Canadian trucker convoy reaches Ottawa—Next to North America.

AUDIO: [Sound of truck horns, cheering]

A convoy of 18-wheelers driving across Canada reached Ottawa over the weekend. Drivers are protesting a vaccination mandate for truckers on cross-border routes. Both the United States and Canada require the vaccines.

Thousands of people turned out to join the protest once it reached the capital. Many voiced frustration with Canada’s pandemic restrictions, including mask mandates.

AUDIO: We're fighting for freedom my man. We're going to keep fighting Trudeau. You've got nothing on us Trudeau. We're going to win, we're going to win, we're going to defeat you Trudeau, freedom, freedom.

On Monday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau denounced the protest and announced he’d tested positive for COVID-19. He said he had mild symptoms and urged people to get vaccinated.

Lunar new year—And finally, we end today with a world-wide celebration.

People across Asia—and those living around the world—welcomed the Lunar New Year on Tuesday.

AUDIO: [Sound of chanting, followed by bell]

Buddhist monks in Taiwan rang a bell…

In the International Space Station, Chinese astronauts hung bright red banners…

AUDIO: [Man speaking Cantonese]

And sent greetings to family and friends back home.

AUDIO: [Sound of drums, cymbals]

And where pandemic restrictions allowed, lion dancers paraded down city streets like this one in Melbourne, Australia.

The coming year will be known as the Year of the Tiger.

That’s this week’s World Tour. Reporting for WORLD, I’m Onize Ohikere in Abuja, Nigeria.

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