LAGOS, Nigeria — After a weekend of violence and fear, U.S. officials warned Sunday that luxury hotels frequented by foreigners and Nigeria’s elite might be bombed by a radical Muslim sect as the death toll from attacks in the country’s northeast rises to more than 100.
The warning by the U.S. Embassy shows how seriously diplomats take the threat posed by the outlawed Islamist group known locally as Boko Haram, which previously bombed the U.N. headquarters in the capital, Abuja, killing 24.
The unusually specific warning from the U.S. Embassy identified possible targets in Abuja as the Hilton, Nicon Luxury and Sheraton hotels. With popular restaurants and bars, the hotels draw diplomats and politicians.
The embassy said an attack might come as Muslims in the oil-rich nation celebrate the Eid al-Adha holiday and that diplomats and staff had been instructed to avoid those hotels.
Still, Nigerian officials downplayed the threat posed by the militants, hoping to reassure Africa’s most populous nation that everything remains under control in a country often violently divided by religious and ethnic differences.
“We’re all expected to live in peace, but as a nation, we have our own challenges,” said President Goodluck Jonathan in a speech televised nationally.
“During this holy period, we still have incidents happening here and there,” added Jona than, a Christian, who appeared wearing a prayer cap and the traditional robes of the country’s Muslim north.
U.S. officials offered no other details about how the embassy received the threat information. Deb MacLean, a U.S. Embassy spokeswoman in Abuja, declined to comment Sunday.
It wouldn’t be the first time Abuja saw itself targeted by Boko Haram, which has waged an increasingly bloody sectarian fight against Nigeria’s weak central government. The warning came as a Nigerian Red Cross official said more than 100 people were killed in attacks Friday in the northeast.
Ibrahim Bulama said he expected the death toll to rise in Damaturu, the capital of rural Yobe state. He said mourners quickly buried some bodies in line with Muslim tradition, making a precise count difficult.
While the hard-hit city remained calm as its Muslim inhabitants celebrated the religious holiday Sunday, army and police units manned roadblocks and streets remained largely empty, Bulama said.
