Source: San Francisco Chronicle
Ahmed Mohammed, Associated Press 29 Dec 2010
A radical Muslim sect has claimed responsibility for the Christmas Eve bombings and church attacks in Nigeria that killed at least 38 people, and the group threatened new attacks to avenge local violence against Muslims.
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Boko Haram in Nigeria
Literally translated, "Boko Haram" means "Western or non-Islamic education is a sin." |
Religious fighting has left more than 500 people dead this year in the deeply divided region where
Jos is located. Authorities had blamed the
Boko Haram group for some of the deaths Friday, but the online statement attributed to the group was the first solid connection between the violence in two cities.
It was not immediately possible to contact members of the sect, which had not previously used the website where the statement appeared. The head of national police said authorities were investigating.
Two bombs went off near a large market in Jos where people were doing last-minute Christmas shopping Friday. A third hit a mainly
Christian area of Jos, while the fourth was near a road that leads to the city's main mosque.
