Adherents of religion of peace have struck again. The Islamic supremacy group Boko Haram launched a series of attacks in Nigeria over the past two days, striking churches and other targets.
Among the churches hit by suspected fighters of the militant Boko Haram group since Thursday, October 18, was an evangelical congregation in Nigeria’s troubled Borno State.
Reporters said gunmen attacked the building of the Church of Brethren in Nigeria in Atagara village in the Gwoza area, killing at least two people.
The entire church was reportedly set ablaze as part of a wider Islamic campaign in the state that also included the killing of a Chinese engineer and three colleagues.
CHURCH TORCHED
At least one church was also torched by militants in the northeastern city of Potiskum, where at least 31 people died in the last three days, including one or more policemen, according to refugees and reporters.
Most churches were closed in Potiskum on Sunday, October 21, as worshipers stayed away amid fears of more anti-Christian violence, residents said.
“Christian residents stayed home for safety reasons,” French news agency AFP quoted resident Bukar Kolo as saying. “A church was also burnt in the attacks and people are afraid to go for [a] Sunday church service for fear of [a] possible attack,” he said.
It was not immediately clear how many Christians were among the dead and injured in Potiskum, but witnesses said that besides the church many other properties were destroyed.
Residents said the toll could be higher than the reported 31 killed in Potiskum, as some relatives had taken some bodies from the streets for burial.
Boko Haram, which means ‘Western Education is a Sin’, has been fighting for an Islamic state in especially central and northern Nigeria, where the group has demanded that Christians leave the area.
The world has a problem that we have not yet reckoned with: An Islamic religious revival. That revival is bringing millions of Muslims back to an understanding of their faith that encourages rejection of everything considered haram — notice the group’s name in this story — and encourages violence in the name of Allah. It’s global and is pushing sharia law as a foundation in civil life wherever and whenever the subject comes up.
You can bet that these attacks in Nigeria, which is slightly majority Christian but with abot 45% or so Muslim, did not start from a YouTube video. You can also bet that unless he is pressed in some way, Barack Obama will remain silent about them. Quick to condemn the West, slow to condemn the rest. That’s Barack Obama.
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