News / Nigeria

Nigerian Shia detainees dying due to lack of medical care: IMN

Tuesday, 22 December 2015 9:35 AM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 22 December 2015 9:47 AM ]

Shia Muslims walk along a street during a protest calling for the release of their leader Ibrahim Zakzaky in Kano, Nigeria, December 21, 2015. ©Reuters

Nigerian Shia Muslims wounded in military raids earlier this month are dying in detention due to a lack of medical care, the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) says.

Ibrahim Musa, the IMN spokesman, said 40 of the wounded, including its leader Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky, risk losing their lives in police and military custody, where they are being denied medical treatment.

Such dire conditions at prisons have claimed the lives of two of the injured detainees so far, Musa said in a statement on Monday.

He also said the Abuja government troops destroyed a school and a shrine belonging to the movement on Monday.

Nigerian forces raided Zakzaky's house on December 13 and arrested him after reportedly killing individuals attempting to protect him, including one of the movement’s senior leaders and its spokesman.

Nigerian soldiers had opened fire on Shia Muslims attending a ceremony at a religious center in the northern city of Zaria the previous day, accusing them of stopping the convoy of the army chief of staff and attempting to assassinate him.

The IMN has said Zakzaky was planning a speech at the center and strongly rejected the assassination accusation.

The attack on Zakzaky’s residence and the violence during the road incident led to the deaths of hundreds of members of the religious community, including three of Zakzaky’s sons.

According to media reports, dozens of people are believed to have been killed in the raid, but the Britain-based Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC) has put the toll at over 1,000.

On Monday, hundreds of Shia Muslims held a protest rally in Kano, Nigeria’s second largest city, demanding the immediate and unconditional release of Zakzaky and other detainees.

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