100+ slaughtered in Nigeria

Nigeria's "Middle Belt," namely the villages of Ugwar Sankwai, Ungwan Gata, and Chenshyi, continues to be rocked with ethnic, geographic, and religious strife. The predominantly agrarian, Muslim Fulani tribe is being accused of committing the atrocities against the mostly Christian Berom community. This brand of land dispute has almost no bearing on the infamous Boko Haram, an al-Qaeda-aligned outfit that advocates forcefully for Sharia law in northern Nigeria. Indeed, it should be reiterated that Al-Jazeera suggests this is more accurately characterized as a land dispute, rather than an ethnic or religious conflict.

Of equal importance is the relatively little attention these widespread acts of violence generate, both within Nigeria and the international community altogether. Festering conflicts have resulted in the death of over 3,000 in Nigeria since 2010 but, as this violence has little perceived economic relevance, it tends to go unreported. It also unfairly stains the international reputation of Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, which facilitates largely peaceful relations between its 170 million Christians and Muslims.

Posted by Colin Wescott