At least eight Shiites killed as they are attacked by irate mobs across northern Nigeria

NIGERIA has been plunged into another spate of bloody violence after eight members of the Shiite sect the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) were killed in several states across northern Nigeria by irate mobs.

 

Yesterday, the Shiites were killed in Katsina, Kaduna and Sokoto States, when irate mobs attacked members of the sect during their processions to celebrate the Islamic New Year. IMN spokesman Ibrahim Musa, has put the death toll of members of the sect at 20, alleging that they were killed by a combined team of security forces and those he described as hoodlums.

 

In Katsina, three Shiite members were killed, in Kaduna four lost their lives, while in Sokoto one was also slain. In addition, several vehicles and properties were either burnt or vandalised during the attacks on the sect.

 

These latest attacks came a day after a standoff between soldiers and members of the group, outlawed last week by the Kaduna State Government. Worshippers had gathered to commemorate the historical events associated with the Islamic month of Muharram that are particularly significant in the Shiite calendar but the gathering was encircled by armed troops.

 

According to UK civil rights body, the Islamic Human Rights Commission, the standoff ended later in the night after the troops withdrew. Yesterday, however, trouble flared up again as  on the Muslim-dominated area of Tudun Wada in the Kaduna metropolis, irate youths descended on the Shiites.

 

During the attack, the angry mob was also said to have demolished the Islamic school belonging to the sect in the area. Also, the residence of one Muktar, said to be a leader of the Shiites, was also set ablaze but the timely arrival of men of the fire service managed to save the building.

 

After that, the mob was said to have descended on members of the sect with sticks, machetes, knives, stones and other weapons, injuring many of them. Kaduna State Police Command spokesman Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Aliyu Usman, denied claims by the Shiites that the police were involved in the attack.

 

He said by the time the police arrived the area, the killings had already taken place. DSP Usman said police were observing the situation, adding that everything was being done to enforce law and order.

 

In Katsina, the state police command confirmed yesterday that three Shiite members were killed, while two policemen sustained injuries when members of the sect attempted to attack the area command of the police in Funtua town during their procession. Usman Abdullahi, the Katsina State police commissioner, said that the police also arrested 46 members of the sect during the incident.

 

He said the Shiites confronted the police area command in the town with the aim of attacking those on duty, adding that the police repelled the attack and fired several canisters of teargas into the air to disperse them. The commissioner added that the police recovered different types of weapons from the sect members, including five dane guns, cutlasses, sticks and other dangerous weapons.

 

In Sokoto, some unidentified hoodlums were reported to have killed a young man believed to be a member of the Shiite sect at the Tudun Wada area of the state capital, Sokoto. Mohammad Abdulkadir, the state police commissioner, explained that the deceased came from Kebbi State and was heading to the procession in another part of the metropolis when the hoodlums attacked him at Tudun Wada.