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More than 300 people were killed in recent days as religious violence continues to haunt Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation.
Government officials reported some of the most barbaric sectarian violence seen in recent years with hundreds of villagers hacked to death and reports of children being scalped while others were burned beyond recognition. Pictured above is a child that was killed during the violence.
Mass burials will be needed for the victims, because bodies were piled on the streets.
All of this violence comes in the name of religion. The "eye for an eye" killings underscore generations of Christian-Muslim tensions in the nation.
The killing took place in three Christian villages in the volatile Jos region.
The government there is Christian-controlled, and Muslims have complained they are treated as second-class citizens there. Aid workers said the most recent violence came in response to a January attack in Muslim areas.
The unrest comes at a time of uncertain political leadership in Nigeria.
The acting president, Goodluck Jonathan, is trying to assert his authority, while the country's leader, Umaru Yar'Adua, remains too ill to govern with a heart ailment.
Any attempts to place blame for the latest violence will be a waste of time. Either side will be able to claim their actions were precipitated by earlier violence from the other side.
The only hope to end to the killing would be for both sides to enter binding peace talks to bring an immediate end to the bloodshed, but with the central government's authority in doubt, it's difficult to see the warring sides put down their weapons long enough to negotiate peace.
Honestly, black-on-black violence worldwide needs to stop. We are killing our own children and leaving our communities both devastated and shell-shocked. We need to make it stop.
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By: ike on 3/10/2010 7:14AM
Since 1960, Nigeria gained independence from Britain, the predominantly Muslim of Northern Nigeria have ruled the country and controlled every natural resources of the country especially oil. They are able to this by controlling the country's army which is the largest in Africa.Today, Nigeria is a pseudodemocractic state modeled after that of United States of America, yet all the natural resources of every region of Nigeria are controlled indirectly by the Moslems. Between 1967 and 1970, the Nigerian army perpetrated one of the most egregious genocide against humanity by slaughtering over 2 million predominantly christians and non Moslems of Eastern Nigeria who wanted to break away from years of oppression from the Muslims. Their claim during the genocide was to keep Nigeria as one nation. However, Nigeria is as fragmented and polarized as ever. Conscientiously, why will you want one Nigeria, when you are intolerant of other peoples freedom of religion, political ambitions, and culture. I guess keeping one Nigeria is more of milking all the natural resources of all corners of the country and rendering the lands of those areas in desolation. Nigeria does not have a visible leader, because the hand picked Moslem president has been gravely ill and not seen in public for months. Him and his cohorts refuse to genuinely cede power to the vice president who is a non Moslems. Nigeria realizes billions of dollars of revenue each year from the sale of crude oil mostly to United States, yet there is no city in Nigeria that has the basic infrastructures like constant running water and electricity. Poor leadership, endemic corruption, very high unemployment especially among the youths have precipitated high crime rate and all kinds of immoral acts.It's not about blacks killing blacks, it's about Moslems killing Christians. Most Moslems despise western culture and Christianity and very poised to annihilate those two. It puzzles me why our leaders don't get it. Yes there are good Moslems and bad Christians but let modern history guide your thoughts and judgements. There will be no abatement on killings of Christians and non Moslems in Nigeria unless the Moslems achieve their primary objective which is to make Nigeria an Islamic state and impose the sharia laws where women who commit adultery are stoned to death in public while the men who paticipated in the same act stand and watch the stoning.
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