April 15, 2014

At least 70 people were killed and some 120 others wounded when the explosion of a massive bomb ripped through a bus station during the morning rush hour in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja. At least 40 vehicles were destroyed, including 16 luxury buses.

Nigeria’s president, Goodluck Jonathan, blamed the attack on Boko Haram, an Islamic extremist group that is attempting to turn Nigeria into a fundamentalist Islamic state under Shari`ah law. Nigeria is approximately half Muslim and 40 percent Christian. Muslims make up the majority of the population in the north. Christians live mainly in southern and central parts of Nigeria. Many Nigerians, especially in the rural areas, practice traditional religions based on the worship of multiple gods and spirits.

Boko Haram, a fundamentalist Islamic terrorist organization, operates mainly in northern and northeastern Nigeria, where the majority of people are Muslims. (World Book map; map data © MapQuest.com, Inc.)

In the past week, Boko Haram carried out attacks that left at least 64 people dead, including 8 teachers at a boarding school. Schools, particularly schools that teach Nigeria’s national curriculum, are frequent targets of Boko Haram, which can be roughly translated as “western education is sinful.”

In February, members of Boko Haram attacked a boys’ boarding school in troubled Yobe state in northeastern Nigeria and killed at least 59 students. The attackers torched a locked dormitory, then shot students trying to escape through windows.

Additional World Book articles:

• Nigeria 2009 (a Back in Time article)
• Nigeria 2010 (a Back in Time article)
• Nigeria 2011 (a Back in Time article)
• Nigeria 2012 (a Back in Time article)
• Nigeria 2013 (a Back in Time article)

A Saudi Arabian court sentenced a woman to 10 lashes for defying the nation’s ban on female drivers. She was found guilty of driving a car in Jeddah in July. Since the 1960′s, educational and occupational opportunities for Saudi woman have increased somewhat. However, the Saudi government continues to enforce a strict version of Sunni law known as Wahhābism. Under this version of Islamic law, women are not allowed to drive or travel without the permission of a male relative.

On September 25, Saudi King Abdullah announced that women will be permitted to vote and run as candidates in municipal (city) elections beginning in 2015. Saudi activists praised the decision as an important step in efforts to loosen restrictions on Saudi women. King Abdullah also announces that women will have the right to serve on the Shura Council, an advisory board that the king can consult. All members of the board are appointed by the government.

Additional World Book articles:

• Human rights
• Shari`ah
• Woman’s suffrage