2010 Jos riots
| 2010 Jos riots | |
|---|---|
Location of Jos in Nigeria
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| Location | Jos, Plateau, Nigeria |
| Coordinates | 9°56′N 8°53′E / 9.933°N 8.883°ECoordinates: 9°56′N 8°53′E / 9.933°N 8.883°E |
| Date | 17 January 2010 |
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Attack type
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religious rioting |
| Deaths | 2,992 |
The 2010 Jos riots were clashes between Muslim and Christian ethnic groups in central Nigeria in and near the city of Jos. Jos is the capital of Plateau State, in the middle of the divide between the predominantly Muslim north of Nigeria and the predominantly Christian south. Since 2001, the area has been plagued by violence motivated by multiple factors. The clashes have been characterised as "religious violence" by many news sources, although others cite ethnic and economic differences as the root of the violence.
The first spate of violence of 2010 started on 17 January in Jos and spread to surrounding communities. Houses, churches, mosques and vehicles were set ablaze, during at least four days of fighting. At least 326 people, and possibly more than a thousand, were killed.
Hundreds of people died in fresh clashes in March 2010. According to The New York Times, the slaughtered villagers were mostly Christians, slain by machete attacks from groups of Hausa–Fulani Muslim herdsmen. Hundreds more fled the area in case the perpetrators returned.
This is the third major incident of rioting in Jos in the last ten years. Some one thousand people were killed in riots in 2001, and at least 700 died in subsequent violence in 2008.
Reports on the catalyst vary. According to the state police commissioner, skirmishes began after Muslim youths set a Catholic church, filled with worshippers, on fire. A local paper reported that attackers yelled "Allahu Akhbar" before burning down churches and homes. Other community leaders say it began with an argument over the rebuilding of a Muslim home in a predominantly Christian neighbourhood that had been destroyed in the November 2008 riots. Both Muslim and Christian youth have been blamed for starting the violence. A 24-hour curfew was imposed on the city on 17 January 2010.
On 19 January, the violence spread to smaller towns and villages south of Jos. Armed mobs, mostly Christians from the Berom ethnic group, attacked Muslims, including Hausa-Fulani residents, killing or driving them out and burning their homes, mosques, and property. The worst massacre took place on 19 January in the settlement of Kuru Karama, where 174 people, including 36 women and 56 children, were killed. Satellite images released by Human Rights Watch show the near complete destruction of buildings in Kuru Karama.
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Wikipedia