In a statement Thursday, a Nigerian foreign ministry spokesman called the Libyan leader's comments “unacceptable and unbecoming of any leader who claims to advocate and champion the cause of African integration and unity.” Qaddafi told African student leaders Wednesday in Tripoli that the violence in Nigeria is a “deep-rooted conflict of a religious nature” that requires a radical solution.

Nigeria, with 150 million people, is split almost evenly between Christians and Muslim. Violence between the faiths in central Nigeria this year has left hundreds dead.