Protests have erupted in Nigeria after the country's electoral commission delayed the presidential election due to increased fighting with the extremist group Boko Haram.
The vote will now be held on 28 March, instead of 14 February, giving the ruling party more time as it struggles against the opposition.
The delay was announced after security chiefs pleaded for more time to make voting safe in parts of the country seized by Boko Haram.
The Islamist extremist group has taken over large parts of the country's northeast and there are fears of a repeat of 2011, when around 1,000 people were killed in post-poll rioting.
Attahiru Jega, chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, said: "If the security of personnel, voters, election observers and election materials cannot be guaranteed, the lives of innocent young men and women and the prospect of free, fair and credible elections will be greatly jeopardised."
The insurgency, which views the election as un-Islamic, has killed at least 13,000 people and pushed more than one million people from their homes since 2009.
Mr Jega had previously said voting would not go ahead in the parts of the country under Islamist control, prompting concerns that those left homeless by the violence would not be able to vote.
President Goodluck Jonathan is in a tight race with former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari for the presidency.
The announcement of the poll delay was met with protests from Nigerians and John Odigie-Oyegun, chairman of Mr Buhari's All Progressives Congress, described it as "highly provocative" and "a major setback for Nigerian democracy".
The US expressed disappointment in the delay, with Secretary of State John Kerry having suggested a link between a peaceful and timely election and US help to fight Boko Haram.
Election monitors from West Africa and the European Union are already in Nigeria and have urged the country to hold the election, with some experts saying that a six-week delay may not make any difference in the safety of voters.
Meanwhile, Boko Haram staged an assault on a Niger border town on Saturday night, the second time the West African nation has come under attack by the Nigeria-based extremists since Friday.
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