JOS, Nigeria — A day of terrorist violence against Muslims and Christians in Nigeria killed more than 60 people, including worshipers in a mosque who came to hear a cleric known for preaching peaceful coexistence of all faiths.
Terrorists from Boko Haram were blamed for the bombings Sunday night at a crowded mosque and a posh Muslim restaurant in the central city of Jos, a suicide bombing earlier at an evangelical Christian church in the northeastern city of Potiskum and attacks in several northeastern villages where dozens of churches and about 300 homes were torched.
President Muhammadu Buhari condemned the attacks and said the government will defend Nigerians’ right to worship freely.
It was the latest spasm of violence by Boko Haram terrorists who have killed about 300 people over the past week — apparently after an order by the self-proclaimed Islamic State terrorist group for more mayhem during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Earlier this year, Boko Haram became an affiliate of the Islamic State.
The deadliest attack came Wednesday, when more than 140 people were killed — mostly men and boys mowed down by gunfire as they prayed in mosques in the northeastern town of Kukawa.
Burials were held Monday for 51 people killed by the two bombings a day earlier in Jos, said Muslim community lawyer Ahmed Garba.
An additional 67 people were wounded, according to Abdussalam Mohammed, the National Emergency Management Agency coordinator.
The explosion at the Yantaya Mosque came as cleric Sani Yahaya was addressing the worshipers, survivors said. Yahaya is the national chairman of the Jama’atu Izalatul Bidia organization, which preaches that all religions should coexist peacefully.
Garba said gunmen also opened fire on the mosque from three directions.
Survivor Danladi Sani said he saw a man dressed in white take aim at Yahaya then blow himself up. Yahaya was unharmed, Sani added.
“He is a great Islamic scholar who has spoken out against Boko Haram, and that is why we believe he was the target,” Sani said.
Another bomb exploded at Shagalinku, a restaurant often patronized by state governors and other top politicians for its specialties popular with Muslims, witnesses said.
Sabi’u Bako was picking up a takeout meal when he heard a massive explosion as he walked away with friends.
“The restaurant was destroyed, and we saw many people covered in blood,” he said. “We can’t believe that we escaped.”
Jos is a hotspot for violent religious confrontations because it is located in the center of the country where Nigeria’s majority Muslim north meets the mainly Christian south. The city has been targeted by bombs claimed by Boko Haram terrorists that have killed hundreds.
Earlier Sunday, a female suicide bomber struck a crowded service of the Redeemed Christian Church of God in Potiskum, killing six people, witnesses said.
Elsewhere in the northeast, terrorists killed nine people and burned down 32 churches and about 300 homes in several villages, said Stephen Apagu, chairman of a self-defense group in Borno state’s Askira-Uba local government area. He said the militia killed three terrorists.
The villages had been attacked three days earlier. Twenty-nine people were killed.
The United States condemned the recent attacks and said it continues to provide counterterrorism assistance to Nigeria to “combat the threat posed by Boko Haram,” said a statement Monday from State Department spokesman John Kirby.
Boko Haram took over a large swath of northeastern Nigeria last year. A multinational force from Nigeria and its neighbors forced the terrorists out of many towns, but bombings and village attacks have increased in recent weeks.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s military freed 180 detainees who had been held for up to two years, accused of being Boko Haram members. Those freed Monday included women with babies and toddlers.
