Ibadan, Nigeria - Thirteen people were yesterday injured while houses and Mosques were vandalised in an inter-Islamic sects combustion in Sabo area of Ibadan over the control of the Sabo area between the Izalla and the Darikat Islamic sects.
By the time the skirmish subsided, blood stains and carcasses of vandalized buildings littered the area as weapons wielding youths patrolled the area, in search of rival sect members to attack.
But for the combined efforts of the State Police Command, the crisis would have escalated to the entire community as shop owners in the area and other residents in the Hausa Community hurriedly shut their doors with numerous others fleeing the area for fear of reprisal attack.
Speaking with newsmen on the development, the Sarkin Sabo, Alhaji Ahmed Zungeru who described the incident as unfortunate blamed the Izala sect leaders and their visitor from Jos, Plateau State, Mallam Kalid Usman as the brain behind the imbroglio, saying his preaching had always contradict what the Islamic religion teaches.
The efforts of the anti-riot police officers who mount surveillance in company of the Armourd Personnel Carrier (APC) saved the day as normalcy returns to the community two hours after the ugly incidence lasted.
Aside the injuries sustained mainly by Izala group members, their three identified mosques in the area were vandalized by their rival sect members while four vehicles packed beside their mosque were equally not spared as the irate 'extremists' smashed the windscreen of two sport utility vehicles and two others.
Those injured in the fracas were rushed to nearby hospital while others with minor injuries were seen been treated by their colleagues with the first aid materials at their disposal.
The Sarkin claimed that when he saw the rampaging youths heading to Izala's place he stopped them and appealed for calm but when he sensed that his pleas was falling on deaf ears, he had to personally approached the Divisional Police Office at Iyaganku for them to send their men to quell the matter.
But one of the Izala leaders, Alhaji Abubakar Saliu Tanko passed the blame on the leadership of the Hausa community, describing the Sarkin's allegation as unfounded.
According to him, the invasion of their 'lawful gathering' allegedly by Sarkin himself, his chiefs and the youths was a ploy to phase out their activities in the area.
Tanko said the attack on his group by the Tijaniya/Adriyah was a fallout of last Friday's a judgment of an Ibadan based Magistrate sitting at Iyaganku, where the judge ruled that none of the two groups had always been at each others' throat over their preaching to stop using Loudspeaker while the service was on so as to avoid what anything that may cause crisis.
When asked if the two sects complied, Tanko alleged that the Tijaniyah group who were obviously the majority in the area had not complied while they (the Izala) had obeyed the judgment and were conducting their service peacefully when the 'assailants' invaded their gathering, caught them unaware and wounded them with dangerous weapons.