Abuja, Nigeria, Jan 22, 2010 / 01:15 am
Responding to the violence in the Nigerian town of Jos, the local archbishop has said the media is further inflaming the conflict with “counter-productive” false reporting. He also said the Nigerian government has failed to provide for its people, especially its youth.
At least 200 people have been killed in and around Jos since Sunday. The Financial Times said the latest violence began when angry youths confronted a Muslim man who was rebuilding his house, which was burned down in similar violence in 2008.
The clashes, which also have an ethnic aspect, have reportedly split along religious lines. Nigeria’s population is split about equally between mainly Muslims in the north and mainly Christians in the south.
Archbishop of Jos Ignatius Ayau Kaigama spoke to the international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).