Shi’ite Protest: Members of Shi’ite clash with Police during their protest at the Central District of Abuja calling for release of their Leader El ZakZaky
Three members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, IMN, sustained injuries on Thursday when police allegedly fired gunshots and tear gas canisters to disperse them while protesting near the Federal Secretariat, Abuja.
The IMN members are popularly known as Shi’ites.
As at the time of the report, information about victims could not be confirmed immediately whether the victims were injured by bullets or other projectiles.
The group, which began their protest march from the Federal High Court on Tigris Crescent in Maitama, and demanding the release of the travel documents of their leader, Ibrahim El-Zakzaky and his wife, Zeenat, when police arrived.
The procession ended abruptly at the Eagle Square junction as the protesters, commuters and commercial motorists scampered to safety.
An eyewitness said the injured Shi’ite members were quickly taken to an undisclosed hospital for treatment.
A Shi’ite leader, Abdulaziz Mustafa, confirmed the development, saying he had received reports that three sect members were shot by police in the leg “while on a peaceful protest at the Federal Secretariat”.
He condemned the attack, insisting that they had the right to engage in a peaceful assembly.
Recall that the Shi’ites had clashed with security forces several times when El-Zakzaky and his wife were incarcerated, resulting in the arrest and prosecution of many of them over a three-and-half year period.
