Religious battle rock Plateau, several slayed

Clashes between Muslim and Christian ethnic groups in central Nigeria today caused “enormous” destruction, with a number of people dead and houses burned, a military officer told the AFP news agency. Captain Charles Ekeocha said the army had imposed a 24-hour curfew on the Barkin Ladi area of Plateau State after the clashes, the latest in a series of violent incidents between the two communities. “Lives have been lost, houses have been razed,” he said, adding that exact details were not known “but the loss is enormous.” The clashes appeared to result from reprisals carried out for violence that had occurred over the previous weekend.