The beer gardens, the police headquarters and random drive-by shootings by the members of the "Books, him bad" crowd , along with a ban on all motorcycles within the city have local residents fleeing in the thousands. Islam is on the march in Nigeria and it is a matter of time until we see another pure Islamic country rise from the ashes of democracy.
From the Ottawa Citizen July 8
Thousands flee Nigerian city hit by Islamist attacks
MAIDUGURI, Nigeria - Thousands have fled the Nigerian city of Maiduguri over the past two days fearing more Islamist attacks and after soldiers were accused of shooting civilians, residents said Tuesday.
Residents piled into the backs of trucks with personal belongings stuffed in sacks or packed up cars to leave the northeastern city, which has seen the brunt of the violence blamed on the Islamist sect known as Boko Haram.
Fear has so pervaded Maiduguri that the university there ordered its doors closed indefinitely on Monday due to security concerns. The bulk of the university's 35,000 students are drawn from other areas of the country.
Another blast targeted at a patrol team hit the city Tuesday, the military said, wounding two soldiers and killing three alleged attackers. A hospital nurse said four people were killed from what appeared to be stray bullets.
Hundreds of troops have been deployed to Maiduguri in a bid to stop the sect, blamed for a raft of deadly bomb attacks and shootings, and last weekend a shootout between soldiers and suspected sect members left at least 11 dead.
Military officials say those killed were sect members, but residents allege soldiers shot civilians and burnt their houses, accusing them of complicity in the Islamist attacks.
The military says explosives set off by the Islamists led to the burning of the buildings.
One resident, Mainasara Mukhtar, said he was leaving for fear of similar violence in his neighbourhood.
"Fliers were anonymously distributed in the neighbourhood warning of impending attacks and residents moved out to avoid being killed by soldiers as it happened in Kalari (neighbourhood)," he said.
"Most of us are leaving town because we have nowhere else to move in the city."
Violence blamed on the sect has intensified in recent weeks, including frequent bomb blasts, while soldiers have been accused of brutality in return.
The commander of the military task force in the area defended his troops, saying they would not target innocent people.
"My men are not responsible for the exodus because even before the deployment of soldiers people have been leaving the city," said Brigadier-General Jack Okechukwu Nwaogbo.
"Soldiers are not animals who will be killing people indiscriminately. Anybody shot or killed by soldiers must have attacked them or is armed, which means he is part of the group we are out to tackle."
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