Nigerian Sharia conflict
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| Nigerian Sharia conflict | |||||||
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 Map of Nigeria |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 Nigeria |
 Boko HaramMuslim extremists |
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Goodluck Jonathan Ibrahim Geidam Ali Modu Sheriff Isa Yuguda |
Mohammed Yusuf † Bukar Shekau † Mallam Sanni Umaru[2] |
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| Strength | |||||||
| Military of Nigeria Nigeria Police Force Nigerian Mobile Police |
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| total casualties=at least 10,000 civilians killed[3] Thousands civilians displaced[4] |
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It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Sharia in Nigeria and August 2011. (Discuss) Proposed since August 2011. |
The Nigerian Sharia conflict is an armed conflict of militant groups, different representatives of religious groupings and the government of Nigeria.
According to a Nigerian study on demographics and Religion, Muslims make up 50.5% of the population. They mainly live in the North of the country. The majority of the Nigerian Muslims are Sunnis. Christians are the second-largest religious groups and make up 48.2% of the population. They predominate in the centre and in the South of the country, whereas adherents of other religions make up 1.4 %.[5]
As Muslims narrowly form the majority of the population, many of them demand to introduce the Sharia - the Islamic law - as main source of legislation. 12 Northern states have introduced sharia as base of the executive and the judiciary in the years 1999 and 2000.
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[edit] Background
In the North of the country are numerous Muslim groups, which want to introduce sharia in the whole country. In the states of the North these demands have been executed in 1999 and 2001.
In the following 9 states the Sharia has full validity:
- Zamfara (27 January 2000)
- Kano (21 June 2000)
- Sokoto
- Katsina
- Bauchi (June, 2001)
- Borno
- Jigawa
- Kebbi
- Yobe
In the following states the sharia is valid for areas with a mainly Muslim population:
[edit] History
[edit] First sectarian clashes
[edit] Introduction of the Sharia
The events of 1999, 2000 and 2001 were riots between Christians and Muslims in Jos, Nigeria about the appointment of a Muslim politician, Alhaji Muktar Mohammed, to the local coordinator federal programme to fight poverty.[6]
[edit] 2004 Yelwa massacre
[edit] 2008 riots
[edit] Boko Haram terror campaign
The group conducted its operations more or less peacefully during the first seven years of its existence[7] That changed in 2009 when the Nigerian government launched an investigation into the group's activities following reports that its members were arming themselves.[8] Prior to that the government reportedly repeatedly ignored warnings about the increasingly militant character of the organisation, including that of a military officer.[8]
When the government came into action, several members of the group were arrested in Bauchi, sparking deadly clashes with Nigerian security forces which led to the deaths of an estimated 700 people. During the fighting with the security forces Boko Haram "fighters reportedly "used fuel-laden motorcycles" and "bows with poison arrows" to attack a police station.[9] The group's founder and then leader Mohammed Yusuf was also killed during this time while still in police custody.[10][11][12] After Yusuf's killing, a new leader emerged whose identity was not known at the time.[13]
After the killing of M. Yusuf, the group carried out its first terrorist attack in Borno in January 2010. It resulted in the killing of four people.[14] Since then, the violence has only escalated in terms of both frequency and intensity.
In January 2012, Abubakar Shekau, a former deputy to Yusuf, appeared in a video posted on YouTube. According to Reuters, Shekau took control of the group after Yusuf's death in 2009.[15] Authorities had previously believed that Shekau died during the violence in 2009.[16]
By early 2012, the group was responsible for over 900 deaths.[17]
[edit] 2010 riots
In 2010, more than 500 people were killed by religious violence in Jos.[18]
[edit] Political development
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[edit] See also
- List of ongoing political conflicts
- Methodist Church Nigeria
- Religion in Bauchi State
- Religion in Borno State
- Religion in Gombe State
- Religion in Jigawa State
- Religion in Kaduna State
- Religion in Kano State
- Religion in Katsina State
- Religion in Kebbi State
- Religion in Niger State
- Religion in Sokoto State
- Religion in Yobe State
- Religion in Zamfara State
[edit] References
- ^ Michael Crowder. The Story of Nigeria. p 253-254
- ^ http://allafrica.com/stories/200908140646.html
- ^ "Analysis: Behind Nigeria's violence". BBC News. 5 May 2004. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1630089.stm.
- ^ "Attack on Nigerian town kills more than 200". CNN. 8 March 2010. http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/africa/03/07/nigeria.violence/index.html?iref=allsearch.
- ^ http://pewforum.org/world-affairs/countries/?countryID=150
- ^ Obed Minchakpu (2001-10-01). "Religious Riots in Nigeria Leave Hundreds Dead". Christianity Today. http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2001/octoberweb-only/10-1-23.0.html. Retrieved 2008-11-30.
- ^ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedCTC; see the help page. - ^ a b "Nigeria accused of ignoring sect warnings before wave of killings". London: The Guardian. 2009-08-02. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/aug/02/nigeria-boko-haram-islamist-sect. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
- ^ Nossiter, Adam (July 27, 2009). "Scores Die as Fighters Battle Nigerian Police". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/28/world/africa/28nigeria.html?scp=6&sq=nigeria&st=cse. Retrieved 22 January 2012.
- ^ "Nigerian Islamist attacks spread". BBC. 2009-07-27. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8169966.stm. Retrieved 2009-07-27.
- ^ "Over 100 dead in Nigerian clashes". RTÉ. 2009-07-27. http://www.rte.ie/news/2009/0727/nigeria.html. Retrieved 2009-07-27.
- ^ Nigeria killings caught on video - Africa - Al Jazeera English
- ^ Bartolotta, Christopher (September 19, 2011). "Terrorism in Nigeria: the Rise of Boko Haram". The World Policy Institute. http://www.worldpolicy.org/blog/2011/09/19/terrorism-nigeria-rise-boko-haram. Retrieved 22 January 2012.
- ^ Boko Haram strikes again in Borno, kills 4
- ^ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedreuters20120112; see the help page. - ^ Jacinto, Leela (2012-01-13). "The Boko Haram terror chief who came back from the dead". France 24. http://www.france24.com/en/20120111-terror-chief-boko-haram-imam-shekau-youtube-nigeria-goodluck-jonathan-al-qaeda-oil. Retrieved 2012-01-24.
- ^ Nossiter, Adam (2012-02-25). "In Nigeria, a Deadly Group’s Rage Has Local Roots". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/26/world/africa/in-northern-nigeria-boko-haram-stirs-fear-and-sympathy.html. Retrieved 2012-02-27.
- ^ "'Hundreds dead' in Nigeria attack". BBC News. 8 March 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8555018.stm.
[edit] External links
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Wikinews has related news: Riots in Nigeria kill nearly 400 |
- Blench, R. M., Daniel, P. & Hassan, Umaru (2003): Access rights and conflict over common pool resources in three states in Nigeria. Report to Conflict Resolution Unit, World Bank (extracted section on Jos Plateau)
