Riots 'kill hundreds in Nigeria'

[Amadeus85]

Hundreds of people are reported to have been killed in central Nigeria after Christians and Muslims clashed over the result of a local election.

A Muslim charity in the town of Jos says it collected more than 300 bodies, and fatalities are also expected among Christians.

There is no official confirmation yet, and figures are notoriously unreliable in Nigeria, says the BBC's Alex Last.

Police have imposed a 24-hour curfew and the army is patrolling the streets.

They have been given orders to shoot on sight in an effort to quell hostilities that mark the worst clashes in the restive West African nation since 2004.

For the second straight day on Saturday, angry mobs went through the town burning homes, churches and mosques.

The Nigerian Red Cross says at least 10,000 people have fled their homes.

Contested election

The mostly Christian-backed governing party, the People's Democratic Party, was declared to have won the state elections in Plateau state, of which Jos is the capital city.



The result was contested by the opposition All Nigeria People's Party, which has support from Muslims.

Violence started on Thursday night as groups of angry youths burnt tyres on the roads over reports of election rigging.

Bodies from the Muslim Hausa community were brought into the central mosque compound.

The local imam, Sheikh Khalid Abubakar, said more than 300 dead bodies were brought there on Saturday alone.

Those killed in the Christian community would probably be taken to the city morgue, raising the possibility that the total death toll could be much higher.

Police spokesman Bala Kassim said there were "many dead," but couldn't cite a firm number.

Despite the overnight curfew, groups in some areas took to the streets again as soon as police patrols had passed by.

Troubled past

In 2001, more than 1,000 people died in religious clashes in the city, situated in Nigeria's fertile "middle belt" that separates the Muslim north from the predominantly Christian south.


And in 2004, a state of emergency was declared in Plateau state after more than 200 Muslims were killed in the town of Yelwa in attacks by Christian militia.

Correspondents say communal violence in Nigeria is complex, but it often boils down to competition for resources such as land between those that see themselves as indigenous versus the more recent settlers.

In Plateau, Christians are regarded as being indigenous and Hausa-speaking Muslims the settlers.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7756695.stm

[Grace Seeker]

One more sin against humanity committed by people who wish to impose their own view on others. And rather than working to convince people to change, they try to impose it through violence. It is a fallen world we live in, and we ourselves are perpetrators of this fallenness.

[Amaanah]

Mumbai
Congo
Nigeria
and so many more
:(

[islamirama]

Nigeria - Victim of western exploitation

While the western mass-media was busy covering the Hindutva-Israel collaboration behind the latest terrorist attacks in Mumbai (India) - a new ethno-religious erupted in Nigeria - resulting in death of more than 200 Muslims at the hands of rival Christians.

Nigeria is the most populous (over 150 million) and largest oil producing country in Africa (in fact it produces more oil than Iraq and Kuwait put together) with second largest economy. Nigeria is also America’s 5th largest oil supplier. The companies which control most of Nigerian oil production are Chevron and Shell.

http://rehmat1.wordpress.com/2008/12...-exploitation/

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[Grace Seeker]

[B]a new ethno-religious erupted in Nigeria - resulting in death of more than 200 Muslims at the hands of rival Christians.

Is it religion, politics, or politicians at the heart of the problem?

It is still unclear exactly who is behind this most recent round of violence. But a pattern seems to be emerging: a seemingly unimportant event sets off a massive amount of violence. This time it was a locale election. In the past it was a beauty contest or a field devastated by a herd of cattle.

It's not surprising that it happens again and again in the center of Nigeria. This is where the Muslim-dominated culture of the north meets the Christian culture that has its roots in the south of the country. The numerous smaller groups of people in this mountainous region have long felt besieged by the more homogeneous Muslims coming from the north. Often the newcomers are cattle herders whose animals compete with farmers for fertile land.

Despite all being citizens of the same country, immigrants to Nigeria have had limited rights in comparison with people who established their roots there long ago. Political and economic conflicts come up again and again then lead to religious unrest. The so-called settlers demand a portion of power and resources while the so-called natives insist on maintaining their rights.

Politicians use these conflicting interests to mobilize their electoral base -- and they're not afraid to resort to violence. The large number of unemployed young people are all too willing to let themselves be recruited into violent gangs for a little bit of money or empty promises.



(from opinion editorial by Thomas Moesch, the head of DW-RADIO's Hausa department)