29 January, 2012

Dont negotiate with Boko Haram, Army Chief Gen Ihejirika warns

Dont negotiate with Boko Haram, Army Chief Gen Ihejirika warns

Lt Gen A. O. IHEJIRIKA, Chief of Ar

my Staff

On 24

January, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Azubike Ihejirika, warned against entering into any negotiation with the militant Islamist sect widely known as Boko Haram, stressing that d

ialogue had never been an effective response to terrorism.

The Army chief gave the warning in the federal capital, Abuja, in his brief remarks at the opening ceremony of a seminar on National Security, organized by the Alumni Association of the National Defence College (AANDEC) in collaboration with the National Defence College (NDC), Abuja.

O

b

jecting to any dialogue with the sect which has killed hundreds of Nigerians, the Army chief said: “No matter and whatever the measures you put in place, we would not get the best result and fast enough, unless the society as a whole rejects terrorism without any justification”.

Gen Ihejirika stressed that: “Those who try to justify acts of terrorism inadvertently support terrorists. And some do so only to discover later that terrorism is not a matter to be negotiated and won”.

He added that: “The Army is not resting on its oars, as it is transforming on the training of its personnel”. In this regard, he disclosed that the last batch of a special quick response squad had just passed out from training and had been deployed to curtail the movements of the terrorists.

Boko Haram rejects talks, threatens fresh attacks

Boko Haram rejects talks, threatens fresh attacks

A spokesman for the Boko Haram Islamist group on Saturday rejected a call by Nigeria's president for talks and threatened fresh attacks if captured members of its group were not freed.

Goodluck Jonathan's call for talks was "not sincere", said Boko Haram spokesman Abul Qaqa, and if captured members of the group were not released, the group would launch attacks like those in Kano.

A series of coordinated bomb attacks and shootings there on January 20 killed at least 185 people.

This latest threat from Boko Haram came hours after the army said troops had killed 11 members of the Islamist group in a shootout Saturday in the northeastern city of Maiduguri, a stronghold of the group.

Lieutenant Colonel Hassan Mohammed, spokesman for Joint Task Force (JTF), a special squad set up to crack down on Boko Haram, broke the news of the clash earlier Saturday.

"Today, in an exchange of fire during a cordon-and-search operation conducted by the JTF, 11 Boko Haram members were killed," he said.

Qaqa confirmed the killings, but disputed the army's account.

"It is true soldiers killed 11 of our members today in Maiduguri," Qaqa said in a conference call with journalists in Maiduguri.

"They were individually picked in their homes in Shehuri neighbourhood in raids by JTF and shot dead. They were unarmed," he added.

Qaqa dismissed as "not sincere" comments by the president in a media interview this week in which he urged Boko Haram to state its demands and begin dialogue.

"They are making double-speak," he said.

"The same day Goodluck Jonathan came out and said we should come out for dialogue security agents in (the northern state of) Sokoto arrested a large number of our members in raids on their homes."

If the group's members were not released, he continued, Boko Haram "will launch attacks in Sokoto similar to the big Kano attacks."

Saturday's clash came as part of a crackdown on the group, which already this year has been blamed for more than 200 deaths in a string of bombings and shootings that has tipped Nigeria into a security crisis.

Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state, has been hit hard by the Boko Haram insurgency, and on December 31 President Goodluck Jonathan placed the city under a state of emergency.

The Islamists have in recent days struck further west, notably in the devastating attack on Nigeria's second city of Kano.

Security forces in Africa's most populous nation and top oil producer have struggled to contain the threat from the group. The insurgents seem to be able to strike at will in a country divided between a mainly Muslim north and mainly Christian south.

The president has faced intense criticism for his failure to stem the violence.

In a recording posted recently on the Internet, the purported head of Boko Haram, Abubakar Muhammad Shekau, said he had ordered the Kano attacks, the sect's deadliest ever, because the army was torturing the group's members.

"I ordered it and I will give that order again and again," he said in the recording.

The assault on Kano involved coordinated gun raids and suicide blasts in Nigeria's second city and highlighted Boko Haram's renewed strength.

But as the group grows increasingly violent, its specific aims and character remain largely unclear.

It has previously said that it wants to create an Islamic state in Nigeria's deeply impoverished mainly Muslim north, and has charged the government with harassing Muslims and raiding Islamic schools.

The group was also blamed for coordinated attacks on Christmas Day, the most deadly at a Catholic Church near the capital Abuja, where at least 44 people were killed. But the group's victims have also included scores of Muslims.

Top Nigerian politicians have denied that the Boko Haram insurgency is being fuelled by religious tensions, linking the group to like-minded external Islamist groups such as Al-Qaeda.

Many analysts however doubt the strength of those links and say Boko Haram remains focused on a domestic agenda and is boosting its strength by exploiting religious tension within Nigeria.

The group launched an uprising in 2009 that was put down by a brutal military assault.

It fell dormant for about a year before re-emerging in 2010 and now believed to have a number of different factions, including a hardcore Islamist cell.

NEWS

23 January, 2012

“Why We Did Not Kill Obasanjo” – Boko Haram Leader

“Why We Did Not Kill Obasanjo” – Boko Haram Leader


Former President Olusegun Obasanjo
Information recently made available to 247ureports.com through a high ranking contact within the organizational structure of the terrorist Islamic group, Boko Haram reveals unnerving revelations regarding the recent attacks on Kano, Bauchi State – and the aborted attack of September 15, 2011 visit by former President of the federal republic of Nigeria, General Olusegun Aremu Obasanjo to the home of the in-law of the slain leader of the Boko Haram, Babakura Fuggu in Borno State.
It was gathered that the leader of Boko Haram, Imam Abubakar Shekau who is currently hiding away in Qoundere, Cameroun following the recent and ongoing attacks on Kano and Bauchi State – had deliberated seriously on the assassination of the former president of Nigeria, General Obasanjo on September 15, 2011 while on a visit to Borno State to the home of the in-law to the slain leader of Boko Haram [Ustaz Mohammed Yusuf].
According to the Boko Haram source, former President Obasanjo had made first contact with Yusuf’s in-lawal, Babakura Fuggu [eldest son of Yusuf's in-law] in early September 2012 concerning opening a channel of dialogue with the terrorist group. The leadership of the group took it uneasy with the choice of Babakura – [since the line of leadership did not automatically follow  family lineage as in traditional settings. As a 'religious' group they did not see Babakura as the rightful person to take over from Yusuf.] - For this reason, the leadership of the group ‘silently’ objected to the meeting between Babakura and Obasanjo.
As Obasanjo concluded his secret meeting the previous day at the Green House with three other religious group [Jamatu Nasir Islam, JNI and CAN] in Jos, the capital of Plateau State on the Wednesday of September 14, 2011, and took off the following day to Borno State, the terrorist group, according to the source, marked the former President within their ‘firing range’ from the moment he landed in Borno State at minutes after 11am till he departed the State in the late afternoon of the same day. According to the source, “we were not sure of him”.
“He was going to be a big catch” said the source who explained that the leadership halted the operation as Obasanjo went inside the residence of Babakura.
“Obasanjo was good to us. We had no problem with Obasanjo. We had him. We could have taken him out”, as he recalled that the sharia movement took off during the period when Obasanjo was president. “The problem started during the late President Yar’Adua regime. Goodluck only inherited the problem. We have no problem with Goodluck. But his Ijaw people around him are deceiving him”.
Interestingly, the Boko Haram source who spoke in fluent English with a slight American accent explained the decision to ‘finish’ Babakura Fuggu came due to what transpired between Obasanjo and Babakura. “We learnt he asked for money”. Babakura requested on behalf of Boko Haram monies to enable the group defray litigation costs and other minor financial requests which the leadership of Boko Haram considered menial and demeaning. The wife, Yakolo, was said to have received money from the former president to the tuned of N500,000. Babakura Fuggu was gundown on September 17, 2012 as he existed his home by his younger brother in the company of other young men dressed in reddish-orange babarigas each armed with AK47s – just barely forty eight [48] hours following the visit of former President Obasanjo.
Meanwhile, information available to 247ureports.com reveals the reason Kano and Bauchi State were attacked a few days ago as having to do with failed promises by the State governors of the two states. The entire northern governors, according to the Boko Haram source, have ongoing relationships with the group. ”Most of them pay us monthly to leave their states alone”.
In Kano State, the former state governor, Malam Shekarau reached an agreement with the terrorist group in late 2004 for an initial monthly disbursement of N5million which was later bumped up to N10million in 2009. The agreement, according to the source, included provision of institutional infrastructural support through the Hisbah [Islam police] project which received yearly budgetary allocation of N1.01billion. The gubernatorial election of April 2011 which introduced Rabiu Kwankwaso as the new governor changed the agreement. The Kwankwaso administration was quick to dismantle the Hisbah set up – and the said agreement to disburse N10million monthly. The governor proceeded to make arrests of known Boko Haram members. Boko Haram leadership who had found comfort in Kano did not appreciate the Kwankwaso administration’s policy on Boko Haram. According to the source, “we warned the Governor of the consequences”.
“We concluded on Kano in December 2011″. The abrupt end to the oil subsidy strike and protests served an opportunity for the group to strike. The preparatory work for the attack and the selection of targets had already been completed. According to the source, an estimated number of casualties was calculated to net 300 minimum. “The go ahead order” was given on Wednesday [January 18, 2012] evening before the leader of the group left the country to Cameroon on the early morning of Thursday, the following day.
In Bauchi State, the Governor, Malam Yuguda reached similar agreement with the leadership of the group. A monthly disbursement of N10million was agreed upon along with provision of training grounds on the many mountain scattered in Bauchi State. The governor also promised to give them security against arrests by the federal government.  The agreement was reached in June 2008 but mid 2011, the governor stopped the disbursement of the N1omillion regularly. Boko Haram were not happy but remained loyal to the agreement because of the unfettered access to the mountains of Bauchi as training camps.
However the arrest and detention of their number 3 man by the State Security Services [SSS] fractured the relationship between the governor and the terrorist group. According to the source, the State was attacked to free the number 3 leader of Boko Haram and to “teach them a lesson”. The detained leader schooled at the prestigious Lincoln University located in the State of Connecticut, USA and owns a block industry in Bauchi State near the home of the former governor of Bauchi State – an area densely populated by Boko Haram operatives.
According to the source, “the northern governors are overwhelmed”. They are aware of the capabilities of the Boko Haram operatives operating in their respective states. Some of the State government officials visit the terrorist groups in their training camps to watch the training exercises. “We train harder than the Nigerian military and they see it” said the source while ‘lamenting’ that the governor continue to tell the President that the menace of Boko Haram is under control.
The Boko Haram source made it emphatic that “we [they] have the weapons and are in control. We are not asking for Islamic Nigeria. We want our men free”.
 http://247ureports.com/2012/01/why-we-did-not-kill-obasanjo-boko-haram/

A Spirano la Lega si affida a Iwobi Primo assessore nigeriano-padano

A Spirano la Lega si affida a Iwobi
Primo assessore nigeriano-padano

  

TONY IWOBI (Foto by TIZIANO MANZONI)

La medaglia se l'è guadagnata sul campo. Tony Iwobi, nigeriano d'origine, a Spirano da 35 anni e da quasi venti leghista, è il nuovo assessore ai Servizi sociali della Giunta targata Carroccio. Il sindaco Giovanni Malanchini se lo coccola a parole: «L'altra sera ha organizzato un corso di computer per gli anziani in municipio e ha fatto il pienone. Diciamo che Tony ha sempre fatto un certo tipo di lavoro in paese, al di là della nomina che arriva ora ad assessore e che si merita tutta...». Complimenti che fanno piacere al neoassessore: «Sono stato davvero molto contento l'altra sera. Avevamo 32 iscritti, è stato bellissimo. Ora questo assessorato, sarà per me una grossa responsabilità». Tony è un lumbard dalla pelle nera. Forse il primo assessore africano nelle fila della Lega in Lombardia. Ci milita dal 1993 e da tre mandati siede nel Consiglio comunale di Spirano. Alle elezioni ha sempre fatto il pieno di voti e preferenze. «Tony è sempre stato il nostro volano – spiega Malanchini –. Nero e leghista? Ricordo a tutti che è stato lui ad accogliermi nella Lega. Tony è leghista da molto prima di me». 

«Mi piaceva la Lega federalista» Ed eccolo Tony, 57 anni, il sorriso sulle labbra, il tono pacato, i modi gentili. Ci accoglie durante una pausa lavoro all'ospedale di Treviglio, dove dal 2010 gestisce con la sua ditta i sistemi informativi dell'azienda ospedaliera. «La Lega? Ho abbracciato il suo progetto nel 1993 quando predicava il federalismo. Io arrivavo dalla Nigeria, una nazione federalista e mi piaceva quell'idea. Quello con la Lega non è solo un rapporto politico, ma anche umano. Qui dentro ho trovato molti amici con cui condividere le stesse idee», racconta mentre si aggira tra i computer. Tony è laureato in informatica, ma prima di arrivare fin qui ha fatto di tutto. «Sono arrivato a Spirano nel 1976», racconta. Dice Spirano e non Italia perché la sua Italia è stata fin da subito questo paese della Bassa di poco più di cinquemila anime. «Colpa del mio amico Charli che era già arrivato qua, io sono stato il secondo nigeriano arrivato a Spirano». Come Charli ha iniziato lavorando al maneggio Beretta, famoso per i tre i cavalli protagonisti della pubblicità del bagnoschiuma Vidal. «Lavoravamo duro, davvero tanto, e non sai quanti calci ho preso dai cavalli», ricorda. 

«Qui ben accolto» Non erano certamente tempi facili e la gente li guardava come se arrivassero da Marte. Chi scrive, era una bambina di 5, 6 anni e ricorda ancora quando vedeva Charli, un ragazzotto dalla pelle scura scura, ogni tanto arrivare alla casa della sua balia. Charli avrebbe poi sposato Olimpia (figlia della balia), come Tony Lucia. Due bergamasche. Non erano tempi facili e le unioni miste si contavano davvero sulle dita di una mano in paese. Tony lo sa, muove le mani come a dire mamma mia, ma i ricordi sono dolci come il miele: «Ho sposato Spirano fin dall'inizio. Questo paese mi ha comunque accolto a braccia aperte e gli spiranesi mi vogliono bene. Qui mi sono sposato e sono nati i miei figli. Ora sono anche nonno». Ecco perché certi discorsi, che dice demagogici, sugli extracomunitari proprio non li vuol sentire, anche se ha un'idea chiara di quello che non va: «Quando sono arrivato qui più di trent'anni fa, ero supercontrollato. I poliziotti venivano a casa mia due volte alla settimana, oggi che fine hanno fatto questi controlli? Chiaro che poi non è giusto neppure arrivare in Italia così, questa è un'altra faccia dello schiavismo. E lo dice uno che è arrivato da straniero qui e si è integrato». 

«Bergamasco nel mondo» 
E se a Spirano Tony è a casa, l'Africa non la dimentica: «Ci sono appena tornato – spiega –, stiamo portando avanti un bel progetto sanitario con il Ghana». Anche se poi glissa se si senta più africano, bergamasco o tutti e due: «Io mi sento cittadino del mondo, ovunque vada mi sento a casa mia». Certo poi ci sono i cavalli di battaglia lumbard, la lingua, le tradizioni, le origini, la propria storia... Tony ha guidato finora la commissione Cultura che ha fatto della riscoperta del dialetto uno dei progetti di punta: «Segreteria telefonica, carta intestata e cartelli in bergamasco possono apparire come folclore, ma io dico "tu bergamasco non devi avere paura di parlare la tua lingua madre, di riscoprire le tue origini"». Ecco perché Tony il dialetto lo capisce e lo parla: «Alura, com'el... Ho sposato una bergamasca, 35 anni fa, mi sono dovuto adeguare, per forza». E per amore.

Vanessa Santinelli

 

02 January, 2012

Ezillo Attack: Death Toll Rises to 66


Ezillo Attack: Death Toll Rises to 66

02 Jan 2012
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By  Christopher Isiguzo 
About 14 fresh bodies were recovered yesterday in Ezillo community in Ishielu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, raising the death toll from last Saturday’s invasion of the community by gunmen to 66.
Hafiz-Ringim-16.jpg - Hafiz-Ringim-16.jpgAlso, Governor Martin Elechi, has said the unfortunate development marked a bad omen for the state, given the number of lives lost in the attack.
Initially, the number of deaths was 52; it later rose to 60 before it rose to 66, according to the youths of the area who had been combing bushes in the area in search of bodies of slain relatives and friends.
The youths who spoke to journalists, who accompanied the Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) in charge of Zone 6 Calabar, Mr. Saidu Daya, to assess the level of carnage in the area, stated that the dead bodies were recovered when a search team constituted by the villagers combed nearby bushes and environs.
The victims comprising children between the ages of three to 10 years, men, adults and the elderly had different parts of their bodies severed while others had mortal gunshot wounds.
The police AIG confirmed that a team of mobile policemen from neighbouring Cross River, Rivers and Akwa Ibom states have already arrived the State and deployed to the crisis area to beef-up security and restore normalcy.
He said detectives from force headquarters Abuja will equally be drafted to Ebonyi State to carry out investigation with a view to fishing out those behind the attack.
Daya appealed to the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Hafis Ringim, to authorise the establishment of mobile police unit at Ezillo.
The AIG who was accompanied by the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Adeola Adeniji, also used the opportunity to console the people of the area including the traditional ruler, Eze Chima Oyiba, who lost one of his sons, four vehicles and property worth millions of naira, after he narrowly escaped.
At the end of the visit, the AIG paid a condolence visit to Elechi at Government House Abakaliki, where he commiserated with him and assured that the police would do all that was necessary to bring solution and also bring the perpetrators of the dastardly act to book. He said he was sent on the visit by the IGP, Ringim, who he said expressed his sympathies over the tragic incident.
In a state-wide broadcast yesterday tagged: “That Evil May Not Endure”, Elechi expressed dismay over the resurgence of the communal crisis which was thought to have been resolved, said the latest development was a phase in the cycle of destruction and bloodletting which have been the lot of the people of the area since May 10, 2008 when the crisis initially broke out.
“The shock waves sent by the latest incident are not only because of the wantonness of the destruction, but also because it came at a time when Ebonyi people and other Nigerians thought that peace had returned to Ezillo.
“As Ezillo burns and Ebonyi people mourn, I want to assure our people and all Nigerians that the State government will stop at nothing to fish out the perpetrators of this dastardly act neither shall we shirk our responsibility to protect lives and property everywhere in the state. We all feel the pains of the bereaved families and we all share their grief,” the governor noted.
The governor further noted in his broadcast that “enemies of peace invaded Ezillo in the early hours of yesterday (December 31, 2011) and proceeded to murder men, women and children who had no inkling about the tragedy that befell them. That was not all. The Ezillo market was burnt down, shops were razed, vehicles burnt and other properties destroyed.”
He however assured people of the state that the security agencies have been given directives to clear the Abakaliki-Enugu Federal Highway which cuts across the warring community of any kind of blockade in order to ensure free-flow of traffic.
Already, the governor has asked the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) to undertake an urgent assessment of the conditions at the crisis area for immediate state intervention.
However, sources at the community told THISDAY that more corpses were recovered late Saturday from the bush within the village, while the number of those who sustained bullet injuries is also on the increase.

Unknown gunmen had last Saturday invaded the Ezillo community killing scores of indigenes of the community including the Divisional Crime Officer (DCO) in charge of the police station in the area. Those killed include; children between the ages of three to five, aged men and women and youths, as well as over 100 Donkey.
Ezillo people had been fighting a communal war with Ezza-Ezillo people, which claimed more than 150 lives before the intervention of law enforcement agents in 2010 that sacked everybody from the disputed land. Since then, relative peace had pervaded the community.
Meanwhile, the South-east zone of the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) has condemned the mass killing of the innocent indigenes of Ezillo by unknown gunmen describing the development as act of terrorism.
In a statement by the Zonal Director, Olu Omotayo, the organisation called on the federal government to immediately find ways of ending such acts of barbarism and terrorism, noting that if left unchecked, there are still strong indications that the situation could go out of hand.

01 January, 2012

Nella battaglia al terrorismo islamista Nigeria, Usa e Ue stanno a guardare

Nella battaglia al terrorismo islamista Nigeria, Usa e Ue stanno a guardare   di  Alessandra Boga
31 Dicembre 2011

Credente cristiano in Nigeria
17619023_attentati-in-nigeria-italia-chiede-ue-ed-onu-di-difendere-la-libert-religiosa-0.jpgLa Nigeria ha vissuto ancora un Natale di sangue. Tre chiese nel Nord del Paese sono state oggetto di attentati che hanno causato almeno 40 vittime. La maggior parte ha trovato la morte sui gradini di una chiesa cattolica a Madalla vicino alla capitale Abuja, dopo aver partecipato alla messa di Natale. Corpi carbonizzati e arti smembrati da un bomba erano sparsi attorno alla chiesa distrutta. Quello del 2011 è stato descritto come “il Natale più nero che la Nigeria abbia mai avuto”.
Responsabile degli attacchi terroristici il famigerato gruppo islamico Boko Haram (“L’educazione occidentale è peccato”). Il mondo, come al solito, ha offerto le sue indecise, esitanti condanne. Tutti, dalla Casa Bianca al Vaticano, hanno definito “senza senso” i sanguinosi attentati che hanno colpito le chiese nigeriane. Eppure è da oltre un decennio che Boko Haram dichiara apertamente i propri obiettivi: applicare la sharia, la legge islamica, e assoggettare, se non eliminare i cristiani dalla Nigeria.
Il gruppo islamico continua a terrorizzare i cristiani. Ne ha uccisi migliaia e piazzato bombe o bruciato centinaia di chiese. Nel Natale dello scorso anno l’organizzazione terroristica ha fatto saltare in aria parecchie chiese, uccidendo quasi 40 fedeli cristiani. Boko Haram, il cui nome per intero in arabo è “Gente della Sunna per la Da’wa (islamizzazione) e il Jihad (la “guerra santa”)”, rappresenta un fronte religioso islamico ostile a tutto ciò che non è musulmano, cristiani in testa. “Per loro la religione cristiana è qualcosa che proviene dall’Occidente, e che quindi non è consentita”, ha spiegato a Ilsussidiario.net mons. Ignatius Kaigama, arcivescovo di Jos, una delle città teatro degli attacchi contro le chiese che hanno insanguinato il Natale in Nigeria. “Il gruppo islamista considera la stessa Costituzione nigeriana come un prodotto della civilizzazione occidentale, e preferisce sostituirla con la Sharia. Boko Haram insomma è caratterizzato dal fanatismo più radicale. Gli stessi musulmani normali disapprovano profondamente le sue azioni, anche perché gli attentati non colpiscono solo le chiese, ma anche la polizia, le caserme e la stessa sede delle Nazioni unite ad Abuja”, ha proseguito l’arcivescovo.
Egli ha anche affermato che non si sa chi ci sia dietro Boko Haram (se gruppi politici o potenze straniere), nè chi fornisca loro fondi ed armi. “A Jos domenica sono stati arrestati quattro membri di Boko Haram, ma prima ancora che la notizia si sapesse erano già stati rilasciati. Mentre il 22 novembre scorso il senatore Ali Ndume era stato incarcerato per avere pianificato un attentato, e il 19 dicembre è stato rilasciato su cauzione. E’ questo il motivo per cui ritengo che non sia messa in atto un’attività d’intelligence sufficientemente incisiva, e la conseguenza è che gli attentati contro le chiese si ripetono in continuazione”.

Solo negli ultimi due mesi, il gruppo islamico ha effettuato attacchi contro decine di luoghi di culto cristiani, piazzando bombe in alcuni e dandone alle fiamme altri. Ha aperto il fuoco su una congregazione costituita soprattutto di donne e bambini, ha ucciso i due figli di un ex terrorista che si era convertito al cristianesimo, ucciso a sangue freddo dei sacerdoti e dei suoi membri si sono recati in alcuni negozi di proprietà di cristiani, ordinando loro di recitare versi del Corano. Coloro che non li conoscevano sono stati uccisi.
Il mese scorso, centinaia di musulmani di Boko Haram, armati, hanno invaso villaggi cristiani, uccidendo, saccheggiando e distruggendo tutto ciò che vedevano, in quattro lunghe ore di terrore. 130 cristiani sono stati uccisi e altri 45 sterminati in un altro villaggio, al grido di “Allahu Akbar !”. Centinaia di cristiani mancano ancora all’appello e migliaia sono fuggiti dalla regione.

“Le autorità federali della Nigeria, i servizi segreti e i leader musulmani non fanno nulla per difendere i cristiani e non osano neppure condannare gli attentati. I terroristi di Boko Haram non guardano in faccia a nessuno e sono pronti a colpire chiunque provi a contrastarli. E così gli stessi giudici, quando per caso mettono le mani su un terrorista, lo liberano subito dopo perché hanno paura”, ha denunciato mons. Ignatius Kaigama. “nessuno osa fare un solo passo avanti per condannare pubblicamente gli attentati di Boko Haram, figuriamoci arrestarne gli esponenti e punirli come prescrive la legge”.

Europa e Stati Uniti non hanno potuto far nulla finora per aiutare la Nigeria (benché gli USA abbiano offerto la loro disponibilità per scovare gli attentatori di Natale). Come ha spiegato lo stesso arcivescovo, “il nostro governo non ha mai richiesto il loro aiuto”. E’ grande l’indignazione dell’alto prelato: “Se le autorità federali non sono in grado di gestire la situazione nel Paese è loro dovere chiedere il supporto internazionale, e francamente non mi riesco a capacitare del motivo per cui non lo abbiano ancora fatto” ed egli ha affermato che “la Nigeria non ha bisogno di militari stranieri, ma di essere aiutata nel coordinamento delle forze di sicurezza federali. Il nostro governo dovrebbe rendersi conto che quanto sta avvenendo è ogni giorno più imbarazzante, oltre che estremamente doloroso per la nostra gente. Il problema non è solo dei cristiani, la gente non può più andare a scuola, nei mercati, in moschea, senza avere il timore di attentati terroristici”.
La mancanza di un appoggio efficace del governo non ha fatto tardare rappresaglie agli attentati di Natale. Alcuni uomini hanno lanciato una bomba all’interno di una scuola coranica nel sud del Paese a maggioranza cristiana, ferendo sei bambini e un adulto.

L’episodio ha avuto luogo nella regione petrolifera del Delta del Niger, mentre nella città di Damaturu nel nord musulmano della Nigeria sono circa 90 mila gli sfollati dopo gli scontri tra Boko Haram e il governo. Ad aggravare la frattura fra cristiani e musulmani c'e' anche la situazione politica. Proprio oggi la Corte Suprema nigeriana ha confermato la vittoria alle presidenziali di aprile di Goodluck Jonathan, cristiano del Sud, respingendo il ricorso del Cpc (Congress for Progressive Change) che aveva denunciato brogli e il cui candidato, Muhammadu Buhari, musulmano del Nord, ex dittatore della Nigeria a meta' degli anni ottanta, e' arrivato secondo. Quest’ultimo ha parlato di un risultato “motivato politicamente”. Dopo le elezioni, le violenze fra le opposte fazioni avevano causato almeno 800 morti nel Paese.
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