National Geographic Looks At The Conflict In Northern Nigeria

Northern Nigeria Conflict -- National Geographic

A bloody insurgency tears at the fabric of Africa’s most populous nation.

The ticket taker, who worked at Kano’s bus station, had his back to the blast. Before he heard it, it knocked him to the ground, and flame licked his head. He lay facedown, dazed, his ears ringing, blood streaming from a shrapnel wound in his leg, but still he knew instinctively what had happened: There was a bomb in the car.

The driver of the Volkswagen had acted strangely. After pulling into the dirt lot of the station, he and the man in the passenger seat had been approached by touts—ticket salesmen who compete for fares—and had told them, “We don’t know where we’re going.” But when the ticket taker went up to the car, the driver said, “We already bought tickets.” Not thinking much of it, the ticket taker walked away.

And then—boom.

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My Comment: A detailed read on Nigeria's war against Boko Haram, and Boka Haram's war against everyone else. The above Al Jazeera video from last year is still relevant today.

Christian - Muslim Clashes Continue In Nigeria

Nigeria’s Troubles: Getting Worse -- The Economist

An extreme Islamist group is becoming ever more lethally effective

VIOLENCE in Nigeria’s north and centre is worsening. Increasingly deadly attacks on churches by Boko Haram, an extreme Islamist group, are straining fragile relations between Christians and Muslims. Attacking churches is not new for Boko Haram but it has turned its attention to targets in Nigeria’s “middle belt” where the two religions mix, often stoking ferocious retaliation. Christian leaders have been warning that the patience of their flocks “will wear out”.

Fierce fighting erupted in Jos, a mixed city, on July 7th, killing at least 63 people. A day later a Nigerian senator and several other mourners were gunned down during a mass burial. Parts of the city are now under a dusk-to-dawn curfew. Boko Haram released a statement on July 10th saying it was behind the attacks and would continue to kill officials. It threatened that Christians “will not know peace again” until they accept Islam.

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More News On Nigeria's Sectarian Violence

Suicide bomber kills 5 at northeast Nigerian mosque -- Reuters
Suicide bomber attacks mosque in northeast Nigeria, killing at least 5 -- Washington Post/AP
Suicide blast in northern Nigeria kills five: police -- AFP
Central Nigeria conflict takes unexpected, dangerous turn with attack claim by Islamist sect -- Washington Post/AP
Sambo Dasuki - New Face of Nigerian Security -- Voice of America
Boko Haram Responsible in Jos Bloodshed? -- John Campbell, Council On Foreign Relations
Jos and its Intractable Conflict -- Nigeria Intel

Nigeria's Sectarian Violence Escalating

Weekend Clashes Kill 200, As Nigeria Struggles For Control -- Christian Science Monitor

Clashes between Muslim herdsmen and Christian villagers are common, but the Boko Haram insurgency and political interference have fueled the conflict to dangerous levels.

Nigeria's three-year-long Islamist rebellion is quickly becoming a case study in how religious conflicts, if left uncontrolled, can spread.

On Saturday, Sen. Gyang Dantong and House Assemblyman Hon. Gyang Fulani attended the mass funeral of Christian villagers murdered in the town of Matse, and were themselves killed by gunmen.

The death toll of 63 (many of their bodies discovered in the home of a Christian pastor) in the central city of Jos would have made this weekend one of the deadliest of the year thus far. But then the reprisal attacks by Christian villagers against their Muslim neighbors – apparently carried out by youth from the Birom indigenous ethnic group – raised the toll to more than 200.

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More News On Nigeria's Religious Strife

Up to 100 killed in Nigeria violence -- Financial Times
Nigerian state widens curfew after 100 killed -- AFP
Nigeria's "Middle Belt" recoils from violence -- Deutsche Welle
Nigeria: At the Mass Burial of '63' - Gunmen Open Fire On Mourners in Jos -- allAfrica.com
52 killed in Christian villages in Nigeria -- The Telegraph
58 killed in central Nigeria raids and reprisals -- CBS
Nigeria violence: Raids on Christian villages near Jos -- BBC
Nigeria violence: Plateau politicians die at funeral -- BBC
Nigeria senator killed at mass burial after ethnic clash -- Reuters
Nigerian Death Toll Rises as Two Lawmakers Killed at Mass Burial -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Gunmen Kill More Than 20 at Mass Burial in Nigeria -- Voice of America