By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
An Anglican archbishop is decrying the lack of international media attention on the bloody persecution of Christians by Islamic extremists that has claimed the lives of more than 800 people last week in the northern Nigerian city of Maiduguri.
According to a press release by Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), during last week’s violence, Boko Haram militants, an obscure fundamentalist Islamic sect opposed to Western-style education, attacked both government and Christian targets. Individuals were killed or taken captive for possible use as human shields against government forces besieging the militants’ compound in Maiduguri’s Railway District.
Once brought to the camp, male captives were given a choice between conversion to Islam or death, while women and girls were kept on as hostages. Survivors of the siege informed CSW sources that the Boko Haram leader, Yusuf Mohammed, who was reportedly killed in July 30 while in police custody, personally oversaw the forcible Islamization of hostages and the execution of anyone who refused to convert.
Over 800 people are officially estimated to have died in the recent spate of violence but that number is expected to rise as many missing civilians could be found dead and buried in mass graves. A University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH) worker told CSW that around 1000 corpses were deposited in the hospital mortuary on Monday, July 27, alone.
The number of people displaced during the violence also remains unclear, but is thought to be in the thousands.
More than 20 Christian churches were destroyed during the violence.
The Anglican archbishop of Jos, Benjamin Kwashi said: “It is unfortunate that the mayhem unleashed on the church is systematically downplayed in the media. The first victim was the ecclesia, which was subjugated and sacrificed prior to any attack on the establishment, yet no report is pointing to Christians as the number one target before all others. We will continue to speak out.”
While calling for a full investigation of the death of Yusuf Mohammed, CSW’s Advocacy Director, Tina Lambert said the leader’s death should “ . . . not inadvertently obscure or detract from the appalling nature of the crimes committed by this sect against innocent civilians. There is an urgent need to assist and compensate the deeply traumatized victims, and for action to ensure a definitive end to the cycle of deadly religious violence in Northern and central Nigeria.”
Meanwhile, leaders of the Christian Association of Nigeria have put out a call for prayer. “Please pray for all Christians in northern Nigeria, more especially in Bauchi, Yobe, and Borno States. Pray for peace in Nigeria and these places.”
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