Shiite Group Releases Missing Members After Army Clash
The Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) on Thursday, January 14, said more than 700 of its members are still missing after the bloodbath the group had with the Nigerian Army on Saturday December 12, 2015, in the northern city of Zaria.
This revelation was contained in an emailed statement to AFP by the spokesman for the IMN, Ibrahim Musa.
“In our list there are about 730 people, men and women, who are still missing, since that fateful Saturday December 12, 2015. These missing people were either killed by the army or are in detention, but their whereabouts are still unknown and undisclosed.
“Some 220 IMN members were in Kaduna city prison, while others were reportedly in military custody elsewhere in Kaduna state, the northeastern state of Bauchi and the capital, Abuja,” he said.
Mausi Segun, a senior Nigeria researcher with HRW blamed the government for lack of response, describing it as “disturbing” and had echoes of the start of Boko Haram insurgency in 2009.
“If there’s no justice or if there’s no accountability for what happened, I fear that we might be looking at a new militant group,” she told AFP.
The members of the Shi’ai group clashed with the Nigerian Army when they reportedly barricaded the road when the convoy of the chief of army staff, General Tukur Yusuf Buratai was approaching.
The army alleged that the Shi’ai members attempted to assassinate the COAS, but the group had since denied such claims. The group leaders’ house, Ibrahim Zakzaky, was raided by the military and he was arrested and taken into detention.
Almost two months after the deadly clash, no official death toll has been announced though Human Rights Watch has said no fewer than at 300 people were killed, but the military has denied the claim, saying its “unsubstantiated.”
Earlier on, the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), submitted its memorandum to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) concerning the alleged pogrom by the Nigerian army on December 12-14, 2015.
Read more gists here: Home