KANO, Nigeria. — Fighting between gangs wielding machetes and guns and stoked by religious zealots spread beyond the flashpoint Nigerian city of Jos after three days of clashes left more than 300 dead.
The death toll continued to rise despite authorities imposing a 24-hour curfew and extra troop deployments ordered by Vice President Goodluck Jonathan.
The unrest erupted on Sunday over plans to build a mosque in a mainly Christian district of the city, which straddles Nigeria's Muslim-dominated north and Christian south.
Residents said the fighting spread during the night to areas on the fringes of Jos, capital of Plateau State.
Idris Sarki, who fled into Jos from the nearby town of Kuru Karama, said “attacks are still going on in areas in the southern parts of the city including Kuru Karama, Bisiji, Sabongidan and Kanar.
“The area I came from has been sacked, all residents like me who are fortunate have left, but many, many have been killed,” he said.
Many people were killed as mobs went from house to house hacking and shooting those inside, defying the curfew, witnesses said. Many buildings have been set ablaze and smoke rose over several parts of the city.
Locals said the gangs were able to move freely because security forces failed to enforce the curfew. However, some residents reported they had seen the troop reinforcements deploying.
Muslim and Christian leaders and a paramedic gave tolls of nearly 300 dead but there was no official confirmation. About 200 bodies had been taken to the central mosque in Jos, Muslim leaders said.
Several hundred people have been reported wounded and casualties have filled hospitals. Some clinics were reportedly running out of medical supplies.
The Red Cross said more than 20 000 terrified residents have been displaced, and were squatting in makeshift camps set up at police and army barracks.
The vice president vowed the government was “determined to find a permanent solution to the Jos crisis.”
“This is one crisis too many and the federal government finds it most unacceptable, retrogressive and capable of further sundering the bonds of unity in our country,” Jonathan said in a statement released by his office.
The Human Rights Watch (HRW) lobby group urged authorities to act with care in their efforts to enforce the curfew.
“Nigeria should ensure that its security forces use restraint and comply with international standards on the use of force in responding to the latest deadly outbreak of inter-communal violence,” said HRW.
HRW said more than 13 500 people have died in religious or ethnic clashes since the end of military rule in 1999 in the west African country.
“This is not the first outbreak of deadly violence in Jos, but the government has shockingly failed to hold anyone accountable,” said HRW. — AFP.
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