President Muhammadu Buhari said he is sad and shock in the wake of the ethnic clashes in the South Eastern Region of Salamat that claimed several lives shattering decades of relative peace in the region.
Ethnic tension in the central African country of Chad left at least 55 people dead and more than 40 injured as three villages were burned to the ground.
The clashes in the south-eastern region of Salamat erupted between different ethnic groups on Wednesday night in the villages around the provincial capital of Am Timan, according to Salamat governor Abel Yamabaye Massira.The president in a message by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, in Abuja on Monday extended heartfelt condolences to President Idriss Deby of Chad over the incident.
“I am shocked and saddened by the incident that shattered decades of relative peace and stability in Chad.“Ethnic and tribal clashes is a threat to African unity and stability and Nigeria joins the rest of Africa to deplore the latest eruption of violence in Chad,” he said.While underscoring the need for African leaders and people to manage their diversity with tolerance and understanding, Buhari noted that “a threat to stability in one part of Africa is a threat to the rest of us.”Given Africa’s economic and social challenges, we cannot afford mutual destruction that makes our challenges more complicated.”
Meanwhile, the president also commiserated with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the government and people of Egypt over the train accident in Northern Cairo that killed dozens of people and injured 98 others.
Egyptian Health Ministry said a passenger train had on Sunday derailed north of Cairo, killing at least 11 passengers and injuring at least 98, with most of them suffering from broken bones, cuts and bruises.
