Firebrand Muslim preacher Hussain Yusuf Mabira attended the 200th anniversary celebration of Islamic holy war in Nigeria and was sickened by the display. Thousands flocked to the northern town of Sokoto to remember the 19th century Islamic scholar Usman dan Fodio, whose empire conquered swaths of West Africa and ruled northern Nigeria for 100 years. Mabira said the ceremony had become just another tool for secular politicians, eager to hide their failings and paper over the sectarian divide — which has killed thousands — in the country’s young democracy. “The celebration is an innovation. It has nothing to do with Islam; it is only a political gathering,” said Mabira, one of a growing number of Nigerian preachers pushing for an Islamic state in the world’s seventh-largest oil exporter. Full Story