ABUJA, Nigeria — Religious leaders in Nigeria are amplifying their call for the government to pay compensation for the destruction of churches by Boko Haram, even as the Islamist militants escalate attacks in the country’s northern states.
Nigerian clergy say at least 1,000 churches have been destroyed in the six-year insurgency, which the government declared crushed in 2016. Human rights groups say thousands more churches have been abandoned or closed in the conflict and that schools, mosques, markets and military installations also have been targeted. Clergy say the attacks on churches have compromised freedom of religion as well as Nigerians’ right to live in peace. And while Boko Haram is the agent of the attacks, religious leaders also assign blame to the government.
Two religions are predominant in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation — Christians in the south and Muslims in the north.
The United Nations estimates that 20,000 people have died in the violence brought by Boko Haram, which also has displaced 2 million people in the northern states of Yobe, Adamawa and Borno. (RNS)
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