Nigerian Governor Imposes Curfew After Clashes

`I am pleased to inform you that normalcy has been restored in these areas,` said Bauchi state governor Isa Yuguda in a statement.

The governor of Bauchi state in Nigeria imposed a night-time curfew on its capital city on Sunday, a day after clashes killed at least four people and wounded dozens.

There were no reports of violence overnight in the northeastern city of Bauchi. Armed security troops patrolled the neighbourhoods hardest hit by the clashes.

It was not immediately clear what triggered the unrest, which left at least 28 people seriously wounded and several houses, churches and mosques burnt down.

"I am pleased to inform you that normalcy has been restored in these areas," said Bauchi state governor Isa Yuguda in a statement.

"However, in order to ensure that some mischievous and evil-minded elements do not take advantage of the situation, it has become necessary for the government to restrict movement in the areas considered to be volatile."

The curfew, which restricts people to their homes from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., was imposed on seven neighbourhoods in Bauchi until further notice. The police have also banned all political rallies and public gatherings.

Hundreds of residents have sought refuge at a government school located in the city's army barracks, where Red Cross officials have set up a food distribution centre.

"We are doing our best to see that the refugees are comfortable ... and to bring them food, especially the children," said Adamu Abubakar, head of the Nigerian Red Cross in Bauchi.

Clashes between Muslim and Christian gangs provoked by a disputed election killed hundreds of people in Jos, capital of neighbouring Plateau state, in November, the worst unrest in Africa's most populous nation for several years.

Africa's most populous country is roughly equally split between Christians and Muslims, although traditional animist beliefs underpin many people's faith.

More than 200 distinct ethnic groups generally live peacefully side by side in the West African country, although civil war killed one million people between 1967 and 1970 and there have been bouts of religious unrest since then.