The Nigeria government says the Boko Haram terrorists and their Islamic State of West African Province (ISWAP) counterparts are now targeting Christians to trigger a religious war in the country.
Information and Culture Minister, Lai Mohammed, stated this at a press conference in Abuja, the nation’s capital Thursday.
“Recall that Boko Haram insurgents didn’t use to discriminate between Christians and Muslims when they carried out their attacks without discrimination.
“When they targeted motor parks, the religion, gender, ethnicity or political leaning of the victims didn’t matter, as long as they inflicted the maximum damage to lives and property.
“But in the wake of renewed onslaught by our tireless military against Boko Haram and their ISWAP allies in recent times, the insurgents have apparently changed their strategy.
“They have started targeting Christians and Christian villages for a specific reason, which is to trigger a religious war and throw the nation into chaos.”
Boko Haram terrorists have been operating in the North East region of Nigeria for over a decade.
The terrorists have recently increased their attacks on Christians prompting protests and demands for the country’s government to take further measures to stop what they described as persecution.
On December 24, 2019, the terrorists executed 11 Christians and beheaded them.
Earlier in the year, they abducted and murdered the Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in Michika Local Government Area of Adamawa State, Lawan Andimi.
They also killed a student of University of Maiduguri, Ropvil Daciya Dalep, a member of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN).
The terrorists also invaded Good Shepherd Major Seminary in Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State, North West Nigeria, and abducted four seminarians.
They subsequently killed one of the seminarians, Michael Nnadi, have been killed by the abductors.
CAN directed its members to fast and pray for three days beginning from January 31 to February 2, 2020, to forestall further killings.
The association also called out its members to embark on “prayer walk” on February 2 in protest against the killings.
“This is absurd, and very unfair to men and women who are daily battling the insurgents.
“The truth is that, having run out of options in their battle against Nigeria, the insurgents are desperate to stay relevant, to stay in the news, hence their cowardly and senseless strategy targeting Christians, as part of their increasing resort to the use of Guerrilla tactics.”
Describing the terrorists as “blood-thirsty, rapacious killers who subscribe to no religion,” Mohammed said the insurgents have realised that religion is an emotive issue in Nigeria and therefore opted to exploit it.
He recalled that when it started Boko Haram never discriminated between Muslims and Christians and between churches and mosques in their attacks.
He appealed to religious appealed to both Christian and Muslims not to fall for “this desperate move by the insurgents, not to allow them to decide us as a people and weaken our resolve to deal the insurgents the mortal blow.”
He added, “In addition, we must also give our unalloyed support to the military, which has also upped the ante against the insurgents. The resort to the increasing use of Guerrilla tactics by the insurgents is a sign of weakness on their part.”
The government’s spokesman said the country is winning the war against the terrorists, especially with the recent killing of top ISWAP leaders at two separate meeting venues in Borno State and the killing of Boko Haram chief judge in Lake Chad.