Niamey, Niger
Mayor Jules Oguet this week ordered “qualified” sorcerers to exorcise evil spirits said to be plaguing Niger’s capital city at night. Oguet said citizens had been complaining for three weeks “of strange apparitions stalking people, notably young women.” Local Muslim leaders dismissed the supernatural explanation and attributed the nocturnal harassment to con men trying to extract money from a frightened population. But the mayor called for “the traditional sacrifices” necessary to rid his city of its curse. “If there are any evil spirits,” he said, “they will be dealt with.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Chemnitz: an 'unlikely renaissance' for the 'forgotten' townThe Week Recommends The birthplace of Germany's industrial revolution is hoping to reinvent itself
-
Maha Kumbh Mela: world's largest religious festival gets under way in IndiaIn The Spotlight Politics of Hindu nationalism has cast a shadow over event touted as biggest ever gathering of humanity
-
North Carolina Supreme Court risks undermining its legitimacyUnder the radar A contentious legal battle over whether to seat one of its own members threatens not only the future of the court's ideological balance, but its role in the public sphere
