On April 3, a teenager, allegedly with a mental disability, entered an Islamic school in the village of Makarfi in Kaduna State, Nigeria and tore a copy of the Quran. Enraged, students and others around attacked the teenager, calling for his death. His mother managed to take him to the police station where officers refused to release him to the protesters. The Muslim youths then attacked the police station before burning down at least nine churches. No one was killed in these attacks. The state's Police Commissioner, Muhammed Yesufu, told Vanguard news that five people had been arrested with more to come. He said that the young man at the center of the controversy was in a coma. He claimed that "what happened had nothing to do with religious problems." However, Sam Kujiyat from the Christian Association of Nigeria claims that foreign-funded Islamic extremists were behind this and other recent attacks.
n recent weeks, violence against Christians has erupted in the central state of Plateau, resulting in 1,500 Christians being killed and 173 church buildings destroyed. The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has released the names of eight pastors killed. In the statement released by Compass on April 5, the CAN warned that it is becoming increasingly difficult to restrain Christians from retaliating.
Pray for peace in Nigeria. Pray that the Spirit of God would give peace and patience to Christians to prevent an escalation of violence in the country. Pray that the Nigerian government will work to prevent Islamic militants from neighbouring countries from stirring up problems in Nigeria. Pray for the recovery of the young man at the center of the recent incident in Makarfi.
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