RELIGIOUS violence which sparked off last Saturday in Maiduguri over a newpspaper cartoon on Prophet Muhammed yesterday continued to spread to other parts of the country.

Reports from our correspondents, indicated that the riots have spread to Enugu, Kotangora, Minna, Lokoja, even as there were renewed tension in Kaduna, Asaba, Onitsha, Bauchi, Kano and Maiduguri.

Hundreds of muslim youths in Kotangora the headquarters of Kotangora local government of Niger State, attacked christian faithful between Thursday night and Friday morning, killing two men and a woman over the publication of blasphemy against Prophet Mohammed by a Denmark newspaper.

In addition, eight people were reported to have sustained serious injuries as a result of the fracas while 10 churches including Catholic and Cherubim and Seraphim churches were completely burnt down by the militant muslim youths.

Saturday Champion visited the town and gathered that the action of the youths was being ignited as a result of a vehicle coming from the eastern part on its way to Sokoto axis with some victims of a reprisal attack from the eastern part.

It was gathered that as soon as some of the muslim residents in the town saw the kind of injury sustained by the people as a result of reprisal attack from Onitsha, they tried to organise themselves unknown to the christian populace in the town.

It was further gathered that the violent attack began at about midnight on Thursday and spread to Friday morning which led to the destruction of buildings owned by non-indigenes in the town.

Most of the residents in the town had to flee their homes to seek refuge at Nacwamase barracks, Kotangora so as to guarantee their personal safety while abandoning their possessions to the irate youths.

It was also noticed that security agents including military personnel are on serious patrol along the major streets while some are stationed at strategic locations and public buildings thereby chasing away the irate youths from embarking upon any act of attack on Christians.

	Copyright © 2006 Daily Champion. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com).