Phone call from my father: on Jos

My dad calls me 5 minutes ago. He says "This thing has really exploded this morning. Much worse than last time. I have never heard so much gunfire in my life."

"It's all retaliation," he says. "It could spill over anywhere. No one is targeting us, but you never know. Someone who has just lost someone is not in their right mind. Just stay home today."

Every few seconds, he'd say "There's another one. Another shot. A heavy one."

"There is a 24 hour curfew. No one can go anywhere."

I ask him if there are refugees. He says not so many, mostly a lot of children at the house.

"There's another shot."

I tell him about the Martin Luther King sermon I read last night about "loving your enemy." "Do you have internet? I'll send it to you," I say.

"Ok. yes, That's what we need right now. You know this thing in Haiti, it's terrible, but there's nothing anyone could have done about it. But this. All of this retaliation.... " His voice is sad.

I tell him to text me if he needs more phone credit. I promise him reluctantly that I will stay at home.

God, help us.

5:34 pm: Links to articles about the most recent Jos Crisis:

(The most recent and most horrifying: http://234next.com/csp/cms

/sites/Next/Home/5514377-146/appeal_for_help.csp)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8468456.stm

http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Home/5514254-146/plateau_governor_invokes_24_hour_curfew.csp

http://allafrica.com/stories/201001190555.html

http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5hWrSZmvk_k_nz58XcrcIx3B-r4AA

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2010/01/19/world/international-uk-nigeria-clashes.html?_r=1

For more background on the last Jos crisis in 2008 and some of the tensions behind it:

http://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2009/07/20/arbitrary-killings-security-forces

http://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2006/04/24/they-do-not-own-place

You can also go back to December 2008 on this blog to look at my posts on the last Jos crisis.