Protests urge Nigerian Shia cleric’s release from jail

People have held peaceful demonstrations in Niger and Nigeria to demand the release of imprisoned Shia cleric and leader of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN), Sheikh Ibrahim al-Zakzaky.

Earlier this week, protesters flocked into the streets of southern Nigerien city of Maradi and Illela, a local government area in the northwestern Nigerian state of Sokoto, denouncing the incarceration of the religious figure.

The demonstrators called for the immediate and unconditional release of Zakzaky, describing the imprisonment of the Shia cleric and a number of his followers as a violation of the Nigerian constitution.

Nigerian soldiers attacked Shia Muslims attending a ceremony at a religious center in the city of Zaria on December 12 last year, accusing them of blocking the convoy of the army’s chief of staff and attempting to assassinate him.

The following day, Nigerian forces also raided Zakzaky’s home and arrested him after reportedly martyring those attempting to protect him, including one of IMN senior leaders and its spokesman.

ME