Leon Usigbe
16 October 2001
AT least 122 people have been killed in two days of religious clashes in Kano triggered by protests against US-led air strikes in Afghanistan.
The clashes which erupted on Saturday were the latest in a catalogue of violence, most with an ethnic or religious dimension, since President Olusegun Obasanjo took office in May 1999 at the end of 15 years of military dictatorship.
Below is a list of some of the most significant clashes since then:
1999:
May 29- On the day Obasanjo takes office, fighting flares between Ijaws and Itsekiris in the Niger Delta over a local government headquarters. Up to 200 killed before troops intervene.
July 18- Clashes between Hausas and Yorubas in Shagamu follow a dispute over traditional rites. More than 60 reported dead before order restored.
July 22- Shagamu riots trigger fighting between Hausas and Yorubas in Kano.
At least 70 reported dead.
Aug 5 - Scores reported dead in clashes between Ijaws and the Ilaje over oil-rich land in the Niger Delta.
Aug 11-Newspapers report up to 200 dead as army intervenes to end clashes between Kutebs and Chambas in Taraba State.
Sept 9 - At least 16 dead in fighting at Lagos port involving Yoruba separatist Oodua Peoples Congress.
Oct 4-Okrikas and Elemes fight for control of land near Nigeria's biggest oil refinery at Port Harcourt. Death toll up to 30.
Nov 21- Troops storm Niger Delta village of Odi to eliminate ethnic Ijaw youth gang blamed for killing 12 policemen. Witnesses say more than 60 killed.
Nov 25- More than 100 killed in rioting between Hausas and Yorubas over control of a market in Lagos.
2000:
Feb 21-Three days of rioting between Hausa Moslems and Christians leaves more than 100 dead and threatens to spread to other areas.
May 20 - Second bout of Muslim-Christian bloodletting erupts in Kaduna and several hundred feared dead after three days of fighting.
May 27- Fighting erupts between the Urhobo and Itsekiri ethnic groups near the oil town of Warri in the Niger Delta region.
June 21- Kano proclaims the adoption of Islamic sharia law but defuses fears of violence by delaying its application until November.
June 25-Scores are reported killed in fighting between minority Tiv and some Hausa-speaking ethnic groups in Nasarawa State.
Oct 15- Four days of fighting between the ethnic Yoruba militia Oodua Peoples Congress and Hausas leaves more than 100 dead
Oct 18 - At least 100 people die in three days of ethnic warfare around Lagos between a militia group of the Yoruba people and Muslim Hausa-Fulanis.
Nov 26 - Sharia law comes into force in Kano.
2001:
Sept 7- Christian-Muslim violence flares after Muslim prayers in the city of Jos, with churches and mosques set on fire. According to the Red Cross, at least 165 people are killed and over 900 hurt in the ensuing days of rioting.
Oct 14-At least 200 people are killed in two days of anti-American riots in Kano. Churches, mosques and shops were set on fire.
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