November 24, 2002	Sunday	Ramazan 18, 1423

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ABUJA, Nov 23: Some 90 Miss World contestants prepared to leave Abuja on Saturday after violent protests against the event forced organizers to abandon plans to hold it in Nigeria.

As the young women got ready to leave their hotel to travel to London, where the contest will now be held, riots raged on in the northern city of Kaduna, forcing thousands to flee their homes.

The Miss World Organisation and Nigerian producers Silverbird productions said that the grand finale of the pageant would still take place on Dec 7 as planned.

ARREST: Nigeria’s secret police have arrested a newspaper editor blamed for fomenting riots over the Miss World contest by publishing an allegedly blasphemous article, his newspaper reported on Saturday.

This Day published the article on Nov 16 regarding the beauty pageant.

The article sparked three days of rioting in the mainly Muslim northern city of Kaduna in which at least 105 people were killed.—Reuters