Nicaragua's dictatorship, led by President Daniel Ortega and Vice President Rosario Murillo, has launched a fresh attack on the Catholic Church by freezing the retirement fund for priests.

Elderly priests, who have diligently contributed to the fund over the years, are now being denied their pensions due to the blocking of the Catholic Church's bank accounts. The fund, established more than two decades ago by the Nicaraguan Bishops' Conference, was designed as a retirement fund to support priests in their later years.

However, the government's actions have left these priests without the financial security they had rightfully earned.

The retirement fund for priests in Nicaragua, which receives contributions from active priests, parishes, and Church institutions, has been targeted by the Ortega dictatorship. The government has blocked the transfer of money from the fund, leaving retired priests unable to collect their pensions.

The Catholic Church's Nicaraguan Bishops' Conference (CEN) has not issued any official statement in response to this attack.

For over 20 years, the fund has operated smoothly, providing monthly pensions of $300 for priests aged 75 and above, and $150 for those between 65 and 74.

The freezing of the fund is part of a series of oppressive measures taken by the dictatorship against the Catholic Church's accounts, presenting a grim reality for elderly priests who rely on these pensions for their livelihoods.

In May, the regime froze the bank accounts of parishes and dioceses, and in June, they took similar actions affecting priests.

Moreover, the dictatorship recently confiscated the assets of 222 former political prisoners who were deported to the United States after having their Nicaraguan citizenship revoked. These measures are part of a larger pattern of persecution and repression orchestrated by the Ortega government against its perceived opponents and the Catholic Church.