Monsignor Osório Citora Afonso, bishop of the diocese of Quelimane and apostolic administrator of the archdiocese of Beira, was killed this morning in the Episcopal House. The College of Consultors of the diocese made this known in an official communication.
According to what was reported by the National Criminal Investigation Service of Mozambique (Sernic), the prelate died following gunshots which they hit him in the chest during a nighttime raid on his residence by a group of individuals whose number has not yet been ascertained.
The reasons for the murder remain unknown at the moment. The authorities have opened an investigation to identify the perpetrators of the crime and clarify the motive. The president of the Episcopal Conference of Mozambique, Inácio Saúre, confirmed the bishop’s death without providing further details on the circumstances of the event.
Condolences were also expressed by the president of Mozambique, Daniel Chapo, who spoke of a “deep feeling of sorrow and dismay”, defining the prelate’s passing as “an irreparable loss for Mozambican society and for the Christian community”.
Born on 6 May 1972 in Ribaué, in the diocese of Nampula, member of the Consolata Missionaries, Monsignor Afonso was ordained a priest on November 3, 2002. Consecrated bishop on 28 January 2024, he was appointed bishop of Quelimane by Pope Leo XIV on 25 July 2025 and, last April, apostolic administrator of the archdiocese of Beira.
The pain expressed by the Pontiff is profound. In a note released by the Holy See, Pope Leo XIV declared: «Pope Leo
The Community of Sant’Egidio also expressed its condolences and firm condemnation of the murder: «The Community of Sant’Egidio expresses its condolences to the Church of Mozambique which mourns Bishop Osòrio Citora Afonso, bishop of Quelimane and apostolic administrator of the archdiocese of Beira, murdered this morning in the Episcopal House. All our communities present in the country – and in particular those of Quelimane and Beira – remember him as a pastor passionate about the Gospel and close to the people, in a land that experiences difficult situations and often, in that part of Mozambique, plagued by serious natural disasters. This is a very serious fact not only for the Mozambican Catholic community but for the universal Church, hit hard while, as in other parts of the world, it carries out its action of peace and defense of the most fragile”.
