The Nigerian President, Olusegun Obasanjo, has pledged to end a cycle of violence in the West African country days after government soldiers massacred hundreds of villagers in apparent revenge for the killing of 19 comrades.
The slaughter in the central state of Bengue was the latest in a series of violent outbreaks, many ethnically or religiously motivated, which have killed over 2,500 people since Obasanjo came to power in 1999.
A statement released today said Obasanjo had pledged to end the violence - which analysts say poses one of the greatest threats to democracy in Nigeria after Obasanjo's election ended 15 years of military rule.
It said Obasanjo had created a security commission to examine community conflict and promote employment for jobless young people who were often involved in fighting.
Youths in the northern city of Kaduna petrol-bombed churches and Christian-owned shops this month in an area adorned with pictures of Saudi-born dissident Osama bin Laden, suspected of masterminding September's attacks on the United States.
Last year, well over 1,000 people died in Kaduna in sectarian bloodshed over plans to introduce Islamic Sharia law. The state government's decision to revive plans to implement partial sharia from November 2 have raised fears of further bloodshed.
Bengue residents said soldiers embarked on a three-day orgy of killing last Monday, apparently avenging the death of 19 comrades sent to quell ethnic conflict between Tivs and Jukun. Tiv militiamen were blamed for abducting and killing the soldiers.
Witnesses said that in three days of attacks on villages starting on Monday, soldiers rounded up Tiv men and shot over 200 people, sending tens of thousands of others fleeing.
Critics have called for Obasanjo to be cautioned, and for his defence minister, who is a Jukun, to resign. They also urged the resignation of the current army chief who spoke out in defence of his troops.
A former army ruler, Obasanjo won respect for handing power to civilians in 1979 before soldiers again took over in 1983.
But amid growing ethnic and religious violence, he has put soldiers on the streets of Africa's most populous country to quell unrest on more than half a dozen occasions.