Amsterdam, March 11: The International Committee of the Red Cross says about 8,000 Nigerians have fled their homes following sectarian clashes that killed over 100 people.
“The Nigerian Red Cross Society is distributing food and water to about 5,000 displaced people (IDPs) who have taken refuge in various police stations in the area and to some 300 detainees,” the organization reported in a statement released on Wednesday.
New official figures put the death toll from Sunday’s clashes near the central city of Jos at 109. Police said 49 people will be charged over the carnage.
Another 150 people have also been arrested in the wake of the fighting.
Human Rights Watch has raised concerns over the Nigerian security forces response to the conflict. Pope Benedict XVI has denounced the ‘atrocious’ bloodshed in the West African nation.
The pontiff has urged Nigerian civil and religious leaders to work toward security and co-existence amid the ongoing conflict between Nigeria’s Christian community and Muslims.
The latest clashes in Jos have been attributed to alleged theft of cattle.
——Agencies