Nigeria tense amid fears of further violence

Continuing violence in Nigeria’s Muslim north has led to fears that the area is becoming ever more radicalised and could lead to further bloodshed between the north and the Christian south.

Muslim rioters burned homes, churches and police stations after results showed Goodluck Jonathan, a Christian, had won Saturday’s presidential election.

Reprisals by Christians began immediately.

Opposition candidate Muhammadu Buhari, has distanced himself from the angry mobs that caused havoc across the Muslim north forcing 35,000 to flee across six of Nigeria’s states.

Still, the former military leader believes there were widespread irregularities in Saturday’s election and said his party would challenge the result in the courts.

At the same time he urged calm and called the violence “sad, unfortunate and totally unwarranted”.

The Red Cross is refusing to release figures on the numbers of dead and injured as they fear yet more carnage.

In Kaduna, the scene of some of the worst incidents of violence, as many as 400 people have been taken into custody.

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