KANO, Nigeria: Nigeria’s
Boko Haram Islamists
have ruled out talks with
the government and
threatened new attacks
in Africa’s most populous
country, rocked by an
insurgency that has killed
more than 200 already
this year.
Residents in the northern
city of Kaduna said the
group, which has often
targeted the police, may
have struck again late
Saturday when gunmen
on motorcycles shot dead
a policeman.
Police confirmed the
killing early Sunday, but
said the attackers were
trying to steal the
officer’s motorcycle.
Kaduna resident Rabiu
Tukur disputed that
account. “They did not
make any attempt to take
his motorcycle, which
raised the fear that the
attackers could be
members of Boko Haram,”
he said.
The group’s deadliest
ever strike came Jan. 20,
north of Kaduna, in
Nigeria’s second city of
Kano, where a
coordinated set of gun
and bomb attacks killed
at least 185 people,
highlighting the Islamists’
renewed strength.
Heavily criticized amid the
escalating violence,
President Goodluck
Jonathan urged the
group to enter dialogue
in a media interview this
week.
But Jonathan’s call for
talks was “not sincere,”
purported Boko Haram
spokesman Abul Qaqa
told journalists Sunday
by telephone in the
northeastern city of
Maiduguri, regarded as
the group’s stronghold.
“We don’t think dialogue
is possible under the
current situation,” he
added.
If captured members of
the group were not
released, it “will launch
attacks in Sokoto similar
to the big Kano attacks,”
Qaqa warned.
Sokoto is a northwestern
city which is the capital of
a state of the same name.
Kano, Nigeria’s second
city and north of Sokoto,
had escaped the worst of
Boko Haram’s violence,
but since the deadly Jan.
20 attacks the mainly
Muslim northern hub has
been put on edge.
The military and police
guarded the city’s
churches Sunday, and
worshippers were frisked
before being allowed to
enter, according to an
AFP reporter.
Crowds were thin and
services ended earlier
than usual because of
security concerns,
worshippers told AFP.
In a leaflet distributed
around the city
overnight, Boko Haram
urged the city’s
residents to persevere
as the group continues
its campaign against
Nigeria’s security forces.
Boko Haram is aware of
“the atmosphere of
inconvenience our
operations have thrown
people into,” the leaflet
said.
The document’s content
was described as a
message from purported
Boko Haram chief
Abubakar Muhammad
Shekau.
Boko Haram’s intensified
violence has shaken
Africa’s top oil producer,
which is divided between
a mainly Muslim north and
mainly Christian south.
A version of this article
appeared in the print
edition of The Daily Star
on January 30, 2012, on
page 10.
Boko Haram Islamists
have ruled out talks with
the government and
threatened new attacks
in Africa’s most populous
country, rocked by an
insurgency that has killed
more than 200 already
this year.
Residents in the northern
city of Kaduna said the
group, which has often
targeted the police, may
have struck again late
Saturday when gunmen
on motorcycles shot dead
a policeman.
Police confirmed the
killing early Sunday, but
said the attackers were
trying to steal the
officer’s motorcycle.
Kaduna resident Rabiu
Tukur disputed that
account. “They did not
make any attempt to take
his motorcycle, which
raised the fear that the
attackers could be
members of Boko Haram,”
he said.
The group’s deadliest
ever strike came Jan. 20,
north of Kaduna, in
Nigeria’s second city of
Kano, where a
coordinated set of gun
and bomb attacks killed
at least 185 people,
highlighting the Islamists’
renewed strength.
Heavily criticized amid the
escalating violence,
President Goodluck
Jonathan urged the
group to enter dialogue
in a media interview this
week.
But Jonathan’s call for
talks was “not sincere,”
purported Boko Haram
spokesman Abul Qaqa
told journalists Sunday
by telephone in the
northeastern city of
Maiduguri, regarded as
the group’s stronghold.
“We don’t think dialogue
is possible under the
current situation,” he
added.
If captured members of
the group were not
released, it “will launch
attacks in Sokoto similar
to the big Kano attacks,”
Qaqa warned.
Sokoto is a northwestern
city which is the capital of
a state of the same name.
Kano, Nigeria’s second
city and north of Sokoto,
had escaped the worst of
Boko Haram’s violence,
but since the deadly Jan.
20 attacks the mainly
Muslim northern hub has
been put on edge.
The military and police
guarded the city’s
churches Sunday, and
worshippers were frisked
before being allowed to
enter, according to an
AFP reporter.
Crowds were thin and
services ended earlier
than usual because of
security concerns,
worshippers told AFP.
In a leaflet distributed
around the city
overnight, Boko Haram
urged the city’s
residents to persevere
as the group continues
its campaign against
Nigeria’s security forces.
Boko Haram is aware of
“the atmosphere of
inconvenience our
operations have thrown
people into,” the leaflet
said.
The document’s content
was described as a
message from purported
Boko Haram chief
Abubakar Muhammad
Shekau.
Boko Haram’s intensified
violence has shaken
Africa’s top oil producer,
which is divided between
a mainly Muslim north and
mainly Christian south.
A version of this article
appeared in the print
edition of The Daily Star
on January 30, 2012, on
page 10.
Ah 9ja, may God help us
ReplyDeleteThey should agree to dailogue, as it is a peacefull means of settling matters
ReplyDelete