20100117
allafrica

Jos — At least 26 persons were killed yesterday as a violent riot erupted again in Jos, the Plateau State capital, forcing the state government to impose a curfew from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. in the metropolis.

About 5,000 people were displaced by the crisis as at press time last night.

The riot came a little over a year since the last one - on Friday, November 28, 2008 - when scores of people were killed and property worth over hundreds of millions of naira were destroyed.

A presidential panel set up by the Federal Government, headed by Gen. Emmanuel Abisoye (rtd), has been sitting in Jos in the last one week, investigating the causes of the 2008 crisis.

Tension had been high in the city before the latest erruption.

The News Agency of Nigeria reported that yesterday's crisis started over a parcel of land being re-developed by "the owner", in the Nasarawa Gwom area of the city. But a group resisted the development, which resulted in flared tempers.

The streets were deserted by 11 a.m. as people ran to close their business premises. By 1 p.m. the first casualty, Umar Alhaji Magaji, was brought to the Jos central mosque. He was said to have been hit by a stray police bullet.

Policemen were later seen shooting at sight along Mango Street in the heart of Jos. Other areas the crisis spread to included Rikkos and Yanshanu.

Smokes billowing from the flashpoint could be seen from afar, while those injured were being conveyed from the spot to the hospital.

Sounds of gunshot could be heard in the affected parts of the city, raising fears about the escalation of the crisis.

The exact number of casualties could not be ascertained as at the time of compiling this report as the Nasarawa area proved inaccessible.

The Secretary of the Council of Ulama in Plateau State, Barrister Lawan Ishaq, told LEADERSHIP that he saw six bodies, bringing the number of deaths to 21 in the area.

A witness said that two other persons were reported dead at the Congo area near Nasarawa and some others were lying at Dutse Uku.

Ishaq alleged that those who started the crisis had done so because they wanted to deceive the Abisoye Panel of Inquiry. He called on the government to quicken efforts to halt the crisis.

Casualties at the city's central mosque were still being brought in by 5:50 p.m. yesterday. The Jama'atu Nasril Islam said at the time that the number of casualties brought in had reached 22.

The state government and the police moved in quickly to check the further spread of the violence.

In a radio broadcast, the state Commissioner for Information, Mr Gregory Yenlong, said that the government's attention had been drawn to a "security breach" in the Nasarawa Gwom area.

"Government is assuring the citizens that the situation is being brought under control, and citizens should go about their normal business; but anyone trying to foment trouble will be dealt with," he warned.

Yenlong asked residents to disregard any rumours arising from the skirmish.

The Plateau State Police Command said the situation had been brought under control.

The command's Public Relations Officer, ASP Mohammed Yerima, advised residents to remain calm and report any suspicious movement to the nearest police station.

"Anyone who takes the law into his own hand will be dealt with accordingly," he said, adding that rumours of "another round of crisis in Jos" should be disregarded.