(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - Abuja, Kaduna, Sokoto, Ibadan, Ilorin — The umbrella Islamic body for Muslims in the North, the Jama'atu Nasril Islam (JNI), yesterday condemned the bombing of St. Theresa's Catholic Church, Madalla, Niger State and another church in Jos, Plateau State, saying it is not in a religious war against Christians. Both incidents claimed the lives of over 40 persons.
But the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in the 19 Northern states and FCT warned yesterday that the attacks may spark a religious war.
Secretary General of JNI, Dr. Khalid Abubakar Aliyu, while reacting to the bombings in a telephone interview with THISDAY, said Islam, as a religion, respects human lives and would do everything to preserve it.
"Human lives must be preserved and protected by all including security agencies; it is rather unfortunate that Nigerians are losing their lives to bomb blasts," Aliyu said.
The Islamic body also tasked security agencies to fish out the perpetrators and bring them to justice, stressing that it is only when the culprits are fished out and punitive measures taken against them that it would serve as deterrent to others planning to carry out such nefarious activities.
In his reaction, the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa'ad Abubakar III, who joined other Muslims in voicing condemnation against Boko Haram, said taking of human lives in the name of religion was strange in Islam.
The sultan, at the formal opening of Islamic Vacation Course (IVC) organised by Muslim Students' Society of Nigeria (MSSN), B-Zone, said dispute could only be resolved through dialogue and not by violence or bloodbath.
He said Islam abhorred violence and called for unity among Muslims to address the challenges facing them.
"Violence is not part of the tenets of Islam and would never be allowed to tarnish the image of the religion," the sultan said.
Chastising Boko Haram, another Islamic group, Muslim Public Affairs Centre (MPAC), said "cold blooded murder of innocent worshippers" was "horrifying and sickening".
In a statement by its Director of Media and Communications, Disu Kamor, MPAC described the perpetrators of the dastardly act as "criminal and devilish hate cultists bent on imposing their evil ideology on us".
"On this occasion and in similar incidents, Nigerian Muslims and Muslims everywhere stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our Christian brothers and sisters and we are determined to continue to work together to remove the mischief of those seeking to destroy peaceful co-existence and harmony. We feel the sorrow and share the grief of all that were affected by this tragedy - this evil attack is a crime committed against mankind," MPAC added.
Also, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) said it is "shocked and petrified by this development".
MURIC in a statement by Dr. Ishaq Akintola disagreed with Boko Haram, which had said it carried out the attack to avenge the killing of Muslims during the last Sallah.
He said: "The attackers cannot claim that they were revenging the attack on Muslims in Jos during the last Eid el-Fitr on August 30, 2011 which left many Muslims dead because Christians celebrating Christmas earlier on December 25, 2010 were the first to be killed in bomb explosions.
"Nothing in the scriptures of Islam justifies this kind of attack. We therefore assert clearly, unequivocally and unambiguously that Boko Haram is not fighting for Nigerian Muslims."
Similarly, the Chairman of the Sokoto State chapter of Izalat Bida'a Waikamtul Sunnah (JIBWIS), Sheikh Abubakar Usman Mabera, said the killing of innocent citizens, under any guise, is a case of murder and in contrast to Islamic teachings.
"Whoever takes the life of a fellow human being has committed evil irrespective of his religion - whether Christian or Muslim - and will pay for his sins. So, this is an act of terrorism which is against Islamic teachings," he said.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) called on the Federal Government to make the fight against crime and terrorism its priority rather than diverting the attention of Nigerians with its debate on the need to remove fuel subsidy.
It added that it is necessary that the root causes of insecurity - poverty and unemployment - be addressed as budgeting huge sums of money for security would not solve the problem.
In a statement yesterday, the Acting General Secretary of the NLC, Comrade Owei Lakemfa, condemned the attacks in strongest terms, describing the perpetrators as "terrorists whose minds are as blurred as their vision".
He called on Nigerians not to be deterred by the terrorists or give up on building a peaceful and united country where the will of the people would prevail.
But the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in the 19 Northern states and FCT warned yesterday that the attacks may spark a religious war.
Secretary General of JNI, Dr. Khalid Abubakar Aliyu, while reacting to the bombings in a telephone interview with THISDAY, said Islam, as a religion, respects human lives and would do everything to preserve it.
"Human lives must be preserved and protected by all including security agencies; it is rather unfortunate that Nigerians are losing their lives to bomb blasts," Aliyu said.
The Islamic body also tasked security agencies to fish out the perpetrators and bring them to justice, stressing that it is only when the culprits are fished out and punitive measures taken against them that it would serve as deterrent to others planning to carry out such nefarious activities.
In his reaction, the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa'ad Abubakar III, who joined other Muslims in voicing condemnation against Boko Haram, said taking of human lives in the name of religion was strange in Islam.
The sultan, at the formal opening of Islamic Vacation Course (IVC) organised by Muslim Students' Society of Nigeria (MSSN), B-Zone, said dispute could only be resolved through dialogue and not by violence or bloodbath.
He said Islam abhorred violence and called for unity among Muslims to address the challenges facing them.
"Violence is not part of the tenets of Islam and would never be allowed to tarnish the image of the religion," the sultan said.
Chastising Boko Haram, another Islamic group, Muslim Public Affairs Centre (MPAC), said "cold blooded murder of innocent worshippers" was "horrifying and sickening".
In a statement by its Director of Media and Communications, Disu Kamor, MPAC described the perpetrators of the dastardly act as "criminal and devilish hate cultists bent on imposing their evil ideology on us".
"On this occasion and in similar incidents, Nigerian Muslims and Muslims everywhere stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our Christian brothers and sisters and we are determined to continue to work together to remove the mischief of those seeking to destroy peaceful co-existence and harmony. We feel the sorrow and share the grief of all that were affected by this tragedy - this evil attack is a crime committed against mankind," MPAC added.
Also, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) said it is "shocked and petrified by this development".
MURIC in a statement by Dr. Ishaq Akintola disagreed with Boko Haram, which had said it carried out the attack to avenge the killing of Muslims during the last Sallah.
He said: "The attackers cannot claim that they were revenging the attack on Muslims in Jos during the last Eid el-Fitr on August 30, 2011 which left many Muslims dead because Christians celebrating Christmas earlier on December 25, 2010 were the first to be killed in bomb explosions.
"Nothing in the scriptures of Islam justifies this kind of attack. We therefore assert clearly, unequivocally and unambiguously that Boko Haram is not fighting for Nigerian Muslims."
Similarly, the Chairman of the Sokoto State chapter of Izalat Bida'a Waikamtul Sunnah (JIBWIS), Sheikh Abubakar Usman Mabera, said the killing of innocent citizens, under any guise, is a case of murder and in contrast to Islamic teachings.
"Whoever takes the life of a fellow human being has committed evil irrespective of his religion - whether Christian or Muslim - and will pay for his sins. So, this is an act of terrorism which is against Islamic teachings," he said.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) called on the Federal Government to make the fight against crime and terrorism its priority rather than diverting the attention of Nigerians with its debate on the need to remove fuel subsidy.
It added that it is necessary that the root causes of insecurity - poverty and unemployment - be addressed as budgeting huge sums of money for security would not solve the problem.
In a statement yesterday, the Acting General Secretary of the NLC, Comrade Owei Lakemfa, condemned the attacks in strongest terms, describing the perpetrators as "terrorists whose minds are as blurred as their vision".
He called on Nigerians not to be deterred by the terrorists or give up on building a peaceful and united country where the will of the people would prevail.
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