The president of the Gambia has declared his country is now \u201can Islamic state,\u201d his office said Saturday, adding that \u201cthe rights of the citizens\u201d would be protected.
\n\u201cGambia\u2019s destiny is in the hands of the Almighty Allah. As from today, Gambia is an Islamic state. We will be an Islamic state that will respect the rights of the citizens,\u201d it quoted President Yahya Jammeh as saying in the city of Brufut on Thursday, \u201cwhere he concluded his dialogue-with-the-people tour.\u201d
\nAn impoverished former British colony on the coast of West Africa nestled within Senegal, the Gambia has a population of 1.96 million, 90 percent of whom are Muslim.
\nOf the remainder, eight percent are Christian and two percent are defined as having indigenous beliefs.
\nJammeh, 50, a military officer and former wrestler from a rural background, has ruled the country with an iron fist since he seized power in a coup in 1994.
\nHe cultivates the image of a practicing Muslim, and is often seen holding a Koran or prayer beads, and of promoting an aura of mysticism.
\nIn September, Human Rights Watch banded his regime one of the most repressive in the world, blaming paramilitaries and secret police for torture, disappearances and extrajudicial killings.<\/p>\n
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