An Irish-born priest was killed at the weekend when he was pulled from his vehicle and shot by an unidentified hijacker, the Irish Ambassador, Mr Eamon O Tuathail, confirmed yesterday.
The hijacking involving Father Malachy Skelton (63) took place outside the gate of the mission station of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, near the small town of Mtubatuba in KwaZulu-Natal, where he was visiting.
He stumbled back into the mission where he died after receiving the Last Rites. Father Skelton was returning to his own community of the Good Shepherd Mission, Hlabasia, where he was parish priest, after a week's holiday. Father Declan Doherty told The Irish Times he had been friends with Father Skelton for more than 40 years, having studied with him in Co Tyrone and in Chicago, and worked with him in the heart of Zulu-speaking South Africa since 1960. "He was a marvellous friend, fluent in Zulu and tireless in serving the Zulu and Englishspeaking community," Father Doherty said. "If priests aren't safe, who is?"
Father Skelton was a member of the Servite order. He was a native of Dungannon, Co Tyrone, and the son of the late John and Catherine Skelton. He entered the order in 1952 and was ordained in 1959. He leaves two sisters, Ms Anne Hughes and Ms Kathleen McGrath, and his brother, Mr Patrick Skelton, all of whom live in Dungannon.