US embassy cable - 05ABUJA1121

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ABUJA 001121 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM, PGOV, PINR, PTER, KDEM, KIRF, NI, MILITANTS 
SUBJECT: ALLEGED AL-QA'IDA THREAT PARALYZES ACTIVITIES IN 
JOS 
 
REF: 04 ABUJA 1927 
 
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Summary 
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1.  Fear and anxiety gripped the citizens of crisis-ridden 
Plateau State in Nigeria's Middle Belt following an alleged 
plan by the Al-Qa'ida terrorist group to unleash terror 
attacks on some parts of the state.  Trepidation over the 
possibility of another religious conflict also became rife 
following a circulation of inciting leaflets in the state 
capital of Jos during the week of June 6.  The scare 
crippled commercial and social activities.  The fretfulness 
also extended to some eastern parts of the state like Yelwa- 
Shendam and Lantang, sites of significant communal violence 
in the past.  Although there was no reports of violence 
related to the threat, Governor Joshua Dariye, security 
agents, religious groups, and community leaders took the 
issue very seriously. 
 
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The Threat of "Jihad" 
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2. Sources from Jos report that during the week in question, 
an inciting leaflet was widely circulated in many strategic 
areas of Jos.  It claimed that an unknown Muslim 
organization called the "Islamic Revolution Committee" with 
alleged links to Al-Qa'ida had concluded plans to carry out 
a "Jihad" against Christians in the Middle Belt.  Moderate 
Muslims opposed to the objectives of the group would be 
attacked.  The group, according to the flyer, also planned 
to eliminate all the retired generals in the State.  The 
document continued: "The Usama bin Ladin Network in 
cooperation with the Islamic Revolution Committee and Jasawa 
(Note: a name given to Hausa-Fulani Muslims in Jos. End 
Note) had mapped out grand strategy to carry out Islamic 
Jihad in Nigeria, especially in the Middle Belt areas of the 
country.  The attack will be directed at Christians and 
Muslims who do not support the Jihad as is done in Saudi 
Arabia.  This Jihad is already going on in Philippines, 
Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan and of course Afghanistan." 
The document added that "All terrorist groups in Nigeria 
should know that Al-Qa'ida is a world Islamic front for holy 
war against Jews and Christians...it is a global front to 
deal with the infidels." 
 
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Reactions:  Old Fears Resurface 
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3.  As quickly as the pamphlet circulated, so too did 
dangerous rumors, old mistrusts, suspicions, accusations, 
and counter-accusations between Muslims and Christians. 
Residents panicked, some traders refused to open their 
shops, and parents were afraid to send their children to 
schools.  By Friday, 10 June, clouds of uncertainty hovered 
dangerously around Jos.  It appeared that the fragile peace 
achieved in the state over the last few months could 
collapse. 
 
4.  Governor Joshua Dariye, who had been suspended in 2004 
during a six-month State of Emergency declared in response 
to communal violence in the state (reftel), was 
understandably worried about the potential for the situation 
to escalate.  He appealed through the media to Muslims and 
Christians to ignore the inciting publication, urging them 
to continue with their normal lives.  Governor Dariye also 
assured the citizens of government protection.  State police 
authorities quickly deployed personnel to strategic points. 
Governor Dariye summoned an enlarged security meeting where 
he met with religious and community leaders.  Muslim and 
Christian leaders at the meeting reportedly disowned and 
denounced the publication, claiming "it was the handiwork of 
some faceless people opposed to the peace process" in the 
state.  At the end, the leaders of each faith agreed to work 
together to maintain peace and order. 
 
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The Pamphlet's Source Identified 
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5.  In spite of the scare, there was no report of violence 
either inside or outside Jos.  According to government 
sources, investigations by security agents traced the 
inciting pamphlet to an unnamed disgruntled Birom man in 
Jos, who was not happy with the creation of new chiefdoms 
that gave Hausa/Fulani a "particular district in Jos 
metropolis."  (Note:  The state government recently created 
some chiefdoms and districts to placate groups like 
Hausa/Fulani, the second largest group in the city after the 
Biroms.  End Note.)  The writer allegedly wanted to exploit 
the frosty relationship between the "indigenes" (Biroms & 
other ethnic groups, primarily Christian) and the "settlers" 
(Hausa/Fulani, mainly Muslim) to cause mayhem. 
 
6.  The government source also commented to us that 
prominent Biroms like General David Jang, the ANPP 
gubernatorial candidate who narrowly lost to Dariye in 2003, 
exploited the creation of the new chiefdoms to incite Biroms 
against the state government.  Jang allegedly told his 
kinsmen that creating a district for the Hausa/Fulani in Jos 
is akin to surrendering the Biroms' traditional authority. 
"Jang's inflammatory remarks spurred such write-ups" as the 
pamphlet, the source further alleged; "You know the mere 
mention of Jihad or Al-Qa'ida would raise concern in 
majority Christian communities particularly where Muslims 
and Christians had fought each in the past."  Other Plateau 
State government sources insisted the writer acted 
independently:  "We discovered that Muslim leaders and 
Christians were not even aware of the contents of the 
document." 
 
7.  A source close to the Muslim leaders in Jos told Pol- 
Specialist that the publication was the "handiwork of some 
people that are interested in giving Islam a negative 
image."  This source maintained the author of the document 
was not even a Muslim, much less representing an Islamic 
organization.  "The publication was meant to cause confusion 
and anarchy in the state but thank God, residents are now 
cautious in dealing with these issues." 
 
8.  The Muslim source averred to us that the language and 
wordings used in the flyer could not have come from a 
Muslim, adding that the writer was not even conversant with 
Islamic culture.  "There is nothing like carrying out an 
'Islamic Jihad' in the Qu'ran," he claimed, then 
rhetorically asked, "Is there any 'Christian Jihad'?"  He 
said the word "jihad" is commonly associated with Islamic 
societies but pointed out that the meaning of the word was 
flexible, sometimes referring to the inner struggle to live 
a better life and other times referring, erroneously he 
said, to the armed struggle against infidels.  On the 
pamphlet's use of the name Al-Qa'ida, our source said the 
writer gave himself away:  "Although I don't know how 
terrorist organizations operate, I believe if they have 
plans to attack any place, they will not normally give 
specific details." 
 
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Comment 
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9.  The distribution of the pamphlet a few days before the 
closure of the U.S. Consulate in Lagos probably contributed 
to the media frenzy over the closure, but had only a 
localized effect on the Nigerian polity. 
 
CAMPBELL