Police, Shiites Clash Over Detained Leader In Abuja

Members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), also known as Shiites, clashed with the police in Abuja throwing the city into confusion.

A senior member of the group, Abdullahi Mohammed Musa, said after the clash that one of their ‘brothers’, Rufai Abubakar, was fatally shot by the police. He said Abubakar might not survive his injury as his condition was very critical.

Musa alleged that more than 90 members of the group were also arrested and were being detained by the police in Abuja, even as he vowed that they would be back on the streets today.

Trouble started Monday when the police barricaded thousands of the Shiites who were on their way to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to lodge a complaint against the police who had warned them against embarking on any form of protest in the city.

“The police told us to stop protesting in Abuja last Friday at the Unity Fountain but we said that was a violation of our rights to peaceful protest and we went to the NHRC to lodge a complaint against them,” Musa said. While they were in the vicinity of the NHRC, Musa alleged that the police surrounded them and started firing tear gas canisters into their midst. “We had to pick the tear gas and throw it at the police,” Musa said.

He alleged that the police opened fire on them, injuring many of the protesters. “Many of the wounded were taken away by the police who called for military reinforcements,” Musa said.

Following nearly two years of detention of their leader, Sheikh Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, Shiite adherents have been mounting protests for his release, leading to clashes with the police and other security agencies.

Courts have ordered El-Zakzaky’s release but the Nigerian authorities claim he is being held in protective custody. The claim has been rejected by his followers who insist that their leader be freed while all those who allegedly massacred their members must be brought to justice.