Again, Nigerian Shiites demand release of leader, Zakzaky

Members of the Islamic Movement on Saturday demanded the immediate and unconditional release of their leader, Ibraheem Zakzaky, and other members of the sect who have been in detention since the group clashed with the military last December.
The sect members, who made the demand during a procession in Kano, said they have a list of almost 1000 of its members who could not be found after the clash.
They asked the Kaduna State government to account for the missing members, whose names have been made public.
The sect members marched from the palace of the Emir of Kano to Radio Kano on Ibrahim Taiwo Road in the ancient city.
Similar processions were held in other northern towns, including Azare in Bauchi, Jos in Plateau State, Gombe in Gombe State, Gusau in Zamfara State, Birnin Kebbi in Kebbi State and Kaduna.
The Kaduna state government recently admitted that its officials and those of the military buried 347 people, including women and children in a mass grave in Mando, Kaduna.
Abdulhamid Bello, who led the protesters, which included women, children and elderly members of the group, lamented the continued detention of Mr. Zakzaky, his wife, Zeenat and other members without filing charges against them.
“Our leader, Sheikh Ibraheem Yaqoub Zakzaky, his wife and hundreds of other brothers of the Islamic Movement are still in illegal detention,” he said.


 


“The case of Sheik Zakzaky and his wife, Sister Zeenat Ibrahim is even worse, because they are being detained with no charge and are in desperate need of medical attention, which we believe the federal government cannot supply.”
Mr. Bello recounted that the sect had published the list of its members that were killed by the army but that the state government and the army went ahead to bury them.
He, however, expressed worry that the alleged atrocities were committed by the military in a democratic government in which the rule of law should reign supremely and that the act was meant to exterminate the sect.
“We have been inundating the public that what happened in Zaria was not a clash between the army and members of the Islamic Movement, but rather an orchestrated plan to exterminate the Movement carried out by the army to its logical conclusion.
“In a situation whereby over 1000 people were killed and no army officer lost his life cannot qualify to be a clash; it is rather a military attack by the army on the members of the Islamic Movement.”
Mr. Bello said the sect had been vindicated by the revelations from the Judicial Commission of Inquiry set up by Kaduna state government.
“But it seems with the recent revelations at the proceedings of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry set up by Kaduna state government, we have been vindicated,” he said.
“In other words the government has agreed that Nigerian soldiers did indeed kill women and children who carried no arms as we have been claiming since.”
He said the truth would always prevail, no matter how long it would take, adding, “What the Kaduna State government said is just a tip of the iceberg.”