Source: The Christian Post, November 27, 2017
A Christian missionary was shot dead in Nigeria after playing “Amazing Grace” on his guitar, two of the British survivors who were rescued in November revealed.
“Ian [Squire] was a man of faith, humor, music, and invention,” David Donovan told The Telegraph on [November 24].
The kidnapers took the Donovans and the other two hostages at gunpoint, ignoring their pleas that they were missionary medics. The missionaries explained that the men who took them belonged to the “Egbesu Boys,” a cult-like gang named after an ancient war god in local Ijaw tribal culture.
After taking the four hostages to the hut, the kidnapers decided to hand back some of their belongings, which included Squire’s acoustic guitar. The British optician decided to try and raise the spirits of the other captives by playing and singing “Amazing Grace,” which happened to be the only song he could play without using music sheets.
“It was the perfect song, and at that point things began to look not quite as bad,” David Donovan recalled, stating that it reminded the other missionaries about their decision to serve the gospel and follow their calling.
“But then, after Ian finished playing, he stood up, and a salvo of gunshots killed him instantly.”
» Read full story. A version of this story that appeared in the Guardian includes pictures of three of the four hostages.