The priests, identified as Carlos Aviles and Hector Treminio, are closely associated with the country’s top Catholic leader. Their arrest brings the total number of clergymen detained last week to at least six, Reuters reported last Saturday.

Aviles, serving as the second-highest ranking cleric in the Archdiocese of Managua, and Treminio, the treasurer, were reportedly detained for publicly praying for jailed Bishop Rolando Alvarez, according to the newswire.

Alvarez, a vocal critic of President Daniel Ortega, was sentenced earlier this year to a 26-year prison term on charges of treason. He had condemned the government’s response to mass protests in 2018.

Source: christianpost.com