Govt officials, clerics gathered for peace prayers in Kano

Government officials and clerics gathered for peace prayers in Kano Monday after a wave of attacks claimed by Islamists left more than 160 dead and raised fresh fears of civil unrest.
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, facing his worst crisis since winning April polls amid a surge in attacks by Islamist sect Boko Haram and mounting social discontent, toured Kano on Sunday and vowed to beef up security.
Several bombs were set off and gun battles raged in coordinated attacks that were launched after Friday prayers in Nigeria’s second largest city and lasted several hours.
Jonathan, after visiting the city on Sunday, said that some suspects had been arrested and that his government would track down the onslaught’s masterminds.
“We will strengthen the security in Kano and other parts of the country,” he said.
As the ancient holy Muslim city of about 4.5 million people still reeled from one of Boko Haram’s bloodiest attacks, some 200 Muslim clerics and political leaders gathered at a mosque in the palace of the city’s emir for special peace prayers.
“I will pray to God that we should never re-live the catastrophe that resulted in the deaths and maiming in our city,” Kano State governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso said.
The emir Ado Bayero told the clerics: “I enjoin you to continue praying for peace and stability in our city. I call upon you to use any religious fora to pray for peace in our land.”
“Without peace life would not be worth living and religion itself can’t be practised.”
A purported spokesman for Boko Haram claimed responsibility for the attacks, saying it was in response to a refusal by the authorities to release its members from custody.

The emir of Kano Ado Bayero leads Muslim faithfuls in prayers at the central mosque in the city of Kano on January 23, 2012 where around 200 Muslim faithful including clerics and traditional leaders held special prayers for peace following multiple explosions and shooting assaults in the city on Friday that left around 250 dead, according to medical source. AFP PHOTO /

Some people being detained at a police station in the city were thought to have been freed during the Friday attacks which targetted mainly police establishments and immigration offices.
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