Nigeria should be divided into two nations to avoid further bloodshed between Muslims and Christians, said Muammar Gaddafi, the Libyan leader, according to a BBC report.
He made this call in a speech to students, where he praised the example of India and Pakistan in 1947 saying the “partition saved the lives of millions of Hindus and Muslims.”
According to the Libyan leader, splitting Nigeria “would stop the bloodshed and burning of places of worship,” Jana, the Libyan news agency quoted him as saying.
Mr. Gaddafi, former chairman of the African Union, described the recent Jos violence as a “deep conflict of religious nature” caused by the federal state, “which was made and imposed by the British, in spite of the people’s resistance to it.”
He described the partition of India as a “historic and radical solution.” Old India nation split in 1947 into a Muslim Pakistan and Hindu-India.
The Libyan leader has a history of making such boisterous calls as he called for the abolishment of Switzerland last year, saying the Swiss land should be divided among Italy, Germany and France.
The BBC also reported that a senior Nigerian diplomat said he was not taking the suggestion seriously.
