Posted on 05/04/2004 6:02:43 PM PDT by ambrose
Christians massacre hundreds of Muslims
~~article_author~~ Reuters
Wednesday, May 05, 2004
YELWA, Nigeria Hundreds of Muslims were killed by Christian militiamen in the latest outbreak of ethnic fighting, a senior police officer said Tuesday.
Mutilated and charred bodies still remained in the main street of Yelwa, a remote market town in central Nigeria. The police had previously reported 67 bodies recovered from the massacre, which occurred on Sunday and Monday. Thousands of Muslims lined the roadside chanting religious slogans and vowing revenge, a witness said. The conflict is rooted in competing claims between the Christian Taroks and Muslim Fulanis over the fertile farmland of central Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation.
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Islamic militants praise 'heroic' slaughter of pregnant woman, 4 daughters
Associated Press
KISSUFIM CROSSING, Gaza Strip - Palestinian militants attacked an Israeli vehicle near a Jewish settlement in the Gaza Strip, killing four children and their mother, the Israeli army said. Two attackers were killed.
The attack near the entrance to the Gush Katif bloc of settlements came as the ruling Likud Party was holding a referendum on Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan to pull out of Gaza. It was unclear how the attack would affect the vote. The militants opened fire - killing the five family members and wounding a motorist in a second vehicle - before detonating a bomb, the army spokesman said. Two soldiers were wounded by gunfire, and the attackers were killed by return fire, the army said. Police said the white Citroen station wagon spun off the road after the initial shooting, then the attackers approached the vehicle and shot the occupants at close range. The car was riddled with bullets, and the carpet inside was stained with blood. Israel Radio reported the mother had been on her way to protest against Sharon's Gaza withdrawal plan. On the car was a bumper sticker saying, "Uprooting the settlements, victory for terror." Settlers said the family lived in the Katif settlement in central Gaza. Israel Radio said a car belonging to CNN television had prevented further bloodshed by blocking the road after shooting broke out. There was no immediate comment from CNN. The militant Islamic Jihad and Popular Resistance Committees, an umbrella group, claimed responsibility for the "heroic" attack in a call to The Associated Press. The group said the attack was in response to Israel's recent assassinations of the founder of the Hamas militant group, Sheik Ahmed Yassin, and his successor, Abdel Aziz Rantisi. "The attack is part of the Palestinian reprisals for the daily crimes committed by the Israeli army against the Palestinian people, especially the killings of Yassin and Rantisi," the group said. Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz canceled scheduled appearances Sunday and planned to convene with top security officials to plan a response to the attack, military sources said. The attack was the deadliest on Israeli settlers in Gaza in many months, and it was unclear how it would affect Sunday's vote. Polls have shown voters are closely divided over the withdrawal plan. Sharon has said his plan would boost Israel's security in the absence of a peace agreement with the Palestinians. His opponents have accused Sharon of caving in to Palestinian militants. "People have to look us in the eyes and not throw us out of our houses," Avner Shimoni, a Gaza settler leader, told Army Radio. "We paid a very heavy price today." There has been a spike in Gaza violence since Sharon announced his intentions to exit the territory several months ago, with each side trying to claim victory ahead of a withdrawal. Israel had gone on high security alert Sunday ahead of the referendum, dividing Gaza into three sections and restricting Palestinian travel.
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