Violence between Christians, Muslims in Nigeria erupts again; 27 killed in earlier fights

Religious violence erupts again in central Nigeria

JOS, Nigeria — Religious violence between Christians and Muslims erupted again Tuesday in central Nigeria, and the state government called for more military units to enter the city where rioters have killed at least 27 people.

Security forces issued a 24-hour curfew after police and soldiers tried to contain the violence with roadblocks and searches but apparently failed. An Associated Press reporter could see smoke rising from the north side of Jos and could hear the sounds of gunshots echoing along the streets.

The rioting began Sunday after Muslim youths set a Catholic church ablaze. Witnesses said rioters armed with knives, homemade firearms and stones attacked passers-by and fought with security forces, leaving bodies in the street and stacked in local mosques.

The Minister of Police Affairs, Ibrahim Yakubu Lame, issued a statement Tuesday blaming the violence on “some highly placed individuals in the society who were exploiting the ignorance and poverty of the people to cause mayhem in the name of religion.”

Jos, the capital of Plateau State, has a history of community violence that has made elections difficult to organize. Rioting in September 2001 killed more than 1,000 people and Muslim-Christian battles killed up to 700 people in 2004. More than 300 residents died during a similar uprising in 2008.

The city is situated in Nigeria’s “middle belt,” where dozens of ethnic groups mingle in a band of fertile and hotly contested land separating the Muslim north from the predominantly Christian south.

While religious violence does happen in Nigeria, it normally has its roots in local issues, rather than influence from international extremist groups.

Sani Mudi, a spokesman for the local imam, said there were about two hours of fighting on Tuesday morning.

“We could hear gunshots all over the area,” said Mudi, who said he saw police moving about the area with soldiers from where he was hiding inside his home.

Mohammed Larema, a local police spokesman, said that security forces had brought the fighting to a halt and that the situation was under control.

However, the state government called for additional military units to enter the city. A major general for a Nigerian armored division toured part of Jos on Tuesday to see what would be needed.

“The situation is bad and the federal government is yet to deploy the troops requested,” said Gregory Yenlong, a state spokesman.

Mudi, the spokesman for the local imam, has said 22 people died Sunday and more than 300 people were wounded in the fighting. Five others died Monday from their wounds, Mudi said.

Local Red Cross officials have said that 5,000 people have been displaced by the rioting.

Associated Press Writer Jon Gambrell contributed to this report from Lagos, Nigeria.