Nigerian Fundamentalist Group Kills 12 Police Officers in North

A Nigerian woman walks past a leaking oil well belonging to shell in Kegbara Dere, Nigeria, on Sunday. (George Osodi - AP)

KANO, Nigeria, April 17 -- A raid by a fundamentalist religious group killed 12 police officers in this northern Nigerian city Tuesday morning, adding to the high tensions of an election season in which scores have been reported killed.

The motive of the attackers was unknown and the relationship, if any, to Saturday's presidential election was unclear. But the news further unsettled Nigerians still reeling from days of rapid-fire political news, including widespread reports of attempted vote-rigging and politically motivated attacks.

Police spokesman Haz Iwendi described the attackers as "fundamentalists" but declined to offer details. In news reports from the scene, residents said the attackers wore clothes resembling those of an Islamic fundamentalist sect known as "the Taliban," after the Islamic militia that formerly ruled much of Afghanistan. The group has a history of raids on police stations in northern Nigeria, which is predominantly Muslim.

Iwendi said the fundamentalists, estimated in the hundreds, first attacked a police station and then ambushed a group of officers who responded to assist. An officer's wife was also reported killed.

By nightfall, the military had taken over the scene and surrounded a nearby building where the attackers had gathered.

"It's like a standoff now, but I'm sure the military will break this resistance," Iwendi said, speaking from Abuja, the capital.

Kano is northern Nigeria's commercial center and, historically, a site of religious and political violence. A Muslim religious leader and an associate were shot to death here Friday. On Monday, a mob demonstrated and burned a car, sending black smoke over the city.

The incidents occurred as Nigeria is struggling through a chaotic two-part election process. Voters cast ballots for governorships last Saturday and will vote this weekend for a new president.

Election officials are scrambling to accommodate a field of candidates suddenly expanded by Monday's Supreme Court ruling restoring Vice President Atiku Abubakar to the ballot. The election commission had banned him because of corruption allegations, but a spokesman confirmed Tuesday that Abubakar's name will appear on the 61 million ballots and that the election will be held Saturday, as scheduled.

"You can take that to the bank," electoral commission spokesman Phillip Umeadi said on state television.

[On Wednesday, the main opposition parties joined forces to demand the annulment of results from state balloting they branded "sham elections" and called for a postponement of the weekend presidential vote, the Associated Press reported.]

Nigerian newspapers have put the toll of election-related violence at more than 50 dead. Police say the true number is 25.