'Nigeria: the context for violence' (2006-2013)

[SteveMetz]

ICG appears to be the only source that continues to monitor this situation in-depth

I'm participating in a wargame next week that deals with it.

[Jedburgh]

The Jamestown Foundation's Terrorism Focus, 6 Jul 07:

Nigeria's Cults and their Role in the Niger Delta Insurgency

In Nigeria's delta region, various militant groups continue to attack multinational energy interests by blowing up infrastructure, siphoning oil and gas from pipelines and kidnapping expatriate energy staff. Additionally, these groups often attack Nigerian security services. The origin of the militant groups in the delta today can partially be explained by the evolution of Nigeria's cult groups, more generally known as confraternities. Nigerian confraternities were largely the precursor to many of the militant groups in the delta. While confraternities began in the country's universities, these gangs eventually spread to the streets and creeks of the energy-rich delta region....

[Jedburgh]

The Jamestown Foundation's Terrorism Monitor, 2 Aug 07:

Mujahid Dokubo-Asari: The Niger Delta's Ijaw Leader

Among the restive Ijaw population in Nigeria's troubled, energy-rich delta region, one man stands alone as the most recognizable face of resistance: Mujahid Dokubo-Asari. Asari has been a central figure in the Ijaw cause, forming in late 2003 one of the delta's most notorious Ijaw militant groups, the Niger Delta People's Volunteer Force (NDPVF). Through this militant youth organization, Asari fought rival gangs, siphoned oil and gas from pipelines, destroyed energy infrastructure and declared an "all-out war" on the Nigerian state. Despite his arrest in September 2005, Asari continued to communicate with his followers, and he became an important symbolic figure for various Ijaw armed groups in the delta. These groups listed Asari's detention as one of their core grievances against the Nigerian state. On June 14, 2007, partially in an effort to pacify Ijaw demands, the newly-installed government of President Umaru Yar'Adua released Asari from prison. Since regaining his freedom, Asari has continued to play a role in the Ijaw struggle....

[sgmgrumpy]

Nigerian Shia base knocked down

Nigeria's security forces have demolished the headquarters of a Shia sect, whose members were accused of killing a rival Muslim cleric.
The security forces destroyed a school, a clinic and the living quarters of the sect in the north-western Sokoto state.

Although no official explanation was given for the demolition, it is being suggested that it is part of a plan to expel the group from the city.

Shia leader Kasimu Rimin Tawaye and some 100 followers remain in detention.

Mr Tawaye and his supporters were arrested after street fighting between them and followers of a prominent Sunni cleric, who was shot dead three weeks ago.

The cleric, Umaru Danmaishiyya, well-known in Sokoto for his sermons against Shias, was shot in a mosque on 18 July and died the following day.

A man was lynched shortly after the shooting and Sunni mobs tried to attack a Shia residential compound.

Sokoto, a deeply religious city, sits on the fringes of the Sahara desert and is the seat of the Sultan of Sokoto, spiritual leader of Nigeria's estimated 70 million Muslims.

In the past Sokoto has avoided the unrest that has affected many other northern Nigerian cities.

The Sokoto state government is expected to issue a statement shortly on the decision to demolish the Shia headquarters.

[Jedburgh]

HRW, 9 Oct 07: Criminal Politics: Violence, “Godfathers” and Corruption in Nigeria

Nigeria is mired in a crisis of governance. Eight years since the end of military rule, the country’s longest-ever stretch of uninterrupted civilian government, the conduct of many public officials and government institutions is so pervasively marked by violence and corruption as to more resemble criminal activity than democratic governance.

This report documents what Human Rights Watch considers to be the most important human rights dimensions of this crisis: first, systemic violence openly fomented by politicians and other political elites that undermines the rights of Nigerians to freely choose their leaders and enjoy basic security; second, the corruption that both fuels and rewards Nigeria’s violent brand of politics at the expense of the general populace; and third, the impunity enjoyed by those responsible for these abuses that both denies justice to its victims and obstructs reform....

[Jedburgh]

ICG, 5 Nov 07: Nigeria: Ending Unrest in the Niger Delta

Immediately after the April elections, government officials sounded optimistic about significant early improvement in the Niger Delta. Instead, the intervening months have seen increasingly incendiary threats from MEND and continued volatility in the creeks. On 1 December, at the closing ceremony of the army’s largest combat training program, “Exercise Eagle Ring 5”, Defence Minister Yayale Ahmed expressed concern that despite government efforts toward ending unrest in the Niger Delta, the situation remains a threat to national security, “as militants are still busy carrying out their operations”.

The Yar’Adua administration has taken the first tentative steps toward confronting the region’s problems but these have to be deepened and sustained. Improving security and building peace in the Delta requires not more rhetoric but determined efforts by government, oil companies, international development agencies and the people of the region alike. The government must go beyond seemingly interminable consultations and quickly come to grips with the core issues that have defined the conflicts in the region for over two decades. If it wastes the present opportunity, worse violence and lawlessness is highly likely.

Complete 29 page paper at the link.

[Surferbeetle]

From this mornings Financial Times:

Nigeria risks losing a third of its oil output by 2015 unless it finds ways to boost investment in joint ventures with foreign energy companies, an internal report by President Umaru Yar’Adua’s energy advisers warns.

The progess report, seen by the Financial Times, highlights the government’s need to find ways to finance the oil industry in the country. It comes after an internal memo from the Shell Petroleum Development Company late last year that said funding problems could put the existence of the company’s joint venture with the Nigerian government at risk. The fresh warning could add to supply fears that have pushed oil prices to fresh records this week and saw prices reach a record $115.45 a barrel on Thursday.

Traders are already worried about Russia’s oil production, considered critical to keep up with Asian demand, after warnings from industry executives that production there has peaked at about 10m barrels a day.

[Surferbeetle]

From today's Bloomberg News:

April 21 (Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose above $117 a barrel in New York after rebel attacks in Nigeria reduced output.

Royal Dutch Shell Plc said an attack last week in Nigeria, Africa's largest oil producer, forced the suspension of 169,000 barrels a day on top of output lost through previous assaults since 2006. OPEC should help ``replenish'' oil inventories because prices are ``too high,'' International Energy Agency Executive Director Nobuo Tanaka said today.

``We are clearly headed over $120 a barrel and we are targeting $125,'' said John Kilduff, vice president of risk management at MF Global Ltd. in New York. ``The last thing we need is another supply disruption. The outage certainly adds to the bullish sentiment.''

[Jedburgh]

ISN Security Watch, 27 Jun 08: Niger Delta: Nowhere to Hide

Militants in Nigeria's southern delta have destroyed the myth that offshore oilfields are safe by attacking, last week, Royal Dutch Shell Plc's Bonga field, which lies some 120 kilometers into Atlantic waters.

With the Nigerian military apparently unable to stop the attacks, analysts believe the government should either reach a negotiated settlement to the conflict or risk the intervention of foreign powers keen to secure oil supplies....

[AdamG]

LAGOS (AFP) - - Anglo-Dutch oil giant Shell cut output in southern Nigeria Monday after militants sabotaged at least one of its pipelines supplying crude, officials said.

Shell declined to say by how much production was being reduced, stressing that the amount should not be exaggerated because of the possible effect on oil prices.


*

"In keeping with our pledge to resume pipeline attacks within the next 30 days, detonation engineers backed by heavily armed fighters from MEND today, Monday, July 28, 2008 at about 0115 hours sabotaged two major pipelines in Rivers state of Nigeria," the MEND said in an email.

"The first pipeline is located in Kula which has been previously sabotaged by us and the second in Rumuekpe, both belonging, we believe, to the Shell Petroleum Development Company."


http://sg.news.yahoo.com/afp/2008072...l-4bdc673.html

[Jedburgh]

The Jamestown Foundation's Terrorism Monitor, 25 Jul 08:

The Global Repercussions of Nigeria’s Niger Delta Insurgency

The “oilfield” wars in Nigeria’s Delta region have been in the international spotlight from the emergence of the Ken Saro-Wiwa-led Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) in 1990 to the current insurgency led by the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND). This latter group is known for its tactic of hostage-taking and its frequent clashes with the Nigerian military. The activities of MEND have greatly influenced peak global oil prices with consequences for production capacities and consumption.....

[Jedburgh]

ICG, 18 Sep 08: Nigeria: Ogoni Land after Shell

.....The exit of Shell/SPDC from Ogoni land, an event much anticipated by the people, will draw the curtain on one of the most contentious relationships between an oil company and a local community in the Niger Delta. It also provides an opportunity for the government to show greater goodwill and sensitivity to the ethnic minority groups of the region. If handled carefully, this transition could persuade some of the Delta’s armed groups that non-violence can produce progress on their demands. If handled poorly, it will not only intensify the Delta insurgency but also set the stage for a new crisis between the Ogoni and SPDC’s successor company......

[davidbfpo]

We all know that Nigeria has a large Muslim community, mainly in the north and that in several states Sharia law has been introduced. Clashes have in the past occurred between Christians and Muslims, often ended by national (federal) action.

These two short articles illustrate: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/8169359.stm and http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...tion-raid.html

(From the later) Around 70 fighters from the fundamentalist group armed with guns and grenades attacked a police station in Nigeria's northern Bauchi state early on Sunday, but retreated after officers opened fire.

[Kevin23]

We all know that Nigeria has a large Muslim community, mainly in the north and that in several states Sharia law has been introduced. Clashes have in the past occurred between Christians and Muslims, often ended by national (federal) action.

These two short articles illustrate: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/8169359.stm and http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...tion-raid.html

All this extremist action along with the religious violence seems to be fairly isolated by region. Even though Christian-Muslim relations aren't perfect in Nigeria, they still for the vast majority live in peace. In addtion Nigeria has much larger problems in society then this.

Well at least that's my two cents.

[Tom Odom]

All this extremist action along with the religious violence seems to be fairly isolated by region. Even though Christian-Muslim relations aren't perfect in Nigeria, they still for the vast majority live in peace. In addtion Nigeria has much larger problems in society then this.

Well at least that's my two cents.

Certainly Nigeria has its other problems. But it has been and still is a border state between largely Muslim northern Africa and southern Christian, animist, etc Africa. The insurgency in the oil bearing zone is fueled largely by tribal conflicts over who controls and therefore benefits from oil exploitation. The cross religious conflict is widespread and therefore potentially is a greater threat.

Tom

Nigeria: Scores die after battle with militants

LAGOS, Nigeria (CNN) -- As many as 150 people may have been killed as Islamic militants battled Nigerian government police and troops Sunday and Monday in the north-central part of the nation, officials said.

More than 150 alleged militants were arrested by Nigerian police after clashes.

Police and troops were dispatched to the militants' hideouts after militants began attacks on government establishments early Sunday, said police spokesman Moses Anegbode.

As authorities exchanged fire with the militants, 41 people, including a soldier and a policeman, were killed, Anegbode said. In addition, some 176 people were arrested in Bauchi, he said.

Besides Bauchi, militants also staged attacks on the nearby states of Yobe and Borno on Sunday and Monday, said Emmanuel Ojukwu, spokesman for the national police.

[davidbfpo]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...ss_world/wires

no conclusive evidence of al Qaeda's presence in Nigeria or of links to the Taliban in Afghanistan have been made public and Boko Haram's apparently chaotic tactics have little in common with those of Islamic militant groups elsewhere

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/8172270.stm

The BBC's Caroline Duffield, in Lagos, says the group's member have isolated themselves from the rest of the community. She says there have been incidents where local groups have prevented them from meeting in mosques and there is very little support for their stance in the wider community…. no-one seems to know just how big a threat the so-called Taliban pose, how big their membership is, or what their next move could be.

Further updates on: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/8172437.stm

Couldn't resist the title.

davidbfpo

[Beelzebubalicious]

I just got back from Nigeria where I visited two northern states in preparation for a proposal for a usaid project focusing on local governance. Usaid has 3 current procurements in governance, health and education totalling somthing like $150 million.

[Beelzebubalicious]

I meant to add that I heard a lot more about Muslim-Muslim clashes, mainly within the Sunni community over application of sharia as well as some persecution of Shia in the area.

[Tom Odom]

Looks like the Nigerian Army played hardball

Nigerian Army Kills 100 at Islamic Mosque
Thursday, July 30, 2009

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria — Troops shelled the compound of an Islamist sect blamed for days of violence in northern Nigeria then attacked its mosque, killing at least 100 militants in a fierce battle.

Sect leader Mohammed Yusuf escaped along with about 300 followers but his deputy was killed in Wednesday night's bombardment, according to Army commander Maj. Gen. Saleh Maina.

The army was conducting

[Beelzebubalicious]

I read that the group said they attacked b/c they were opposed to western education. From what I understand, this means westernizing Islamic education by adding math and science, not western education in general. Is that right!