A Court in Nigeria Orders the Release of Imprisoned Shiite Leader

A federal court in Nigeria ruled on Friday that Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky, the leader of the largest Shiite community in the country, who has been detained for over a year without any specific charges, must be released and compensated. According to Reuters, Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky, leader of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, has been imprisoned since mid-September 2015 following clashes between his supporters and Nigerian army forces in the city of Zaria in northern Nigeria. Results of a judicial investigation published in August this year indicate that around 350 supporters of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria were killed during the violent clashes in 2015 and buried in mass graves. Supporters of this movement have held numerous protests and gatherings demanding the release of their leader. Meanwhile, religious ceremonies of this group have often been attacked and turned violent. In the latest incident in the city of Kano in northern Nigeria, at least 9 participants in a ceremony were killed due to police gunfire. The U.S. government has expressed concern over the actions of the Nigerian police. Some security experts believe that if the repression of Shiites in northern Nigeria, where the majority of the population is Sunni, continues, this population may resort to armed violence similar to the Boko Haram group. Armed attacks by Boko Haram began in 2009 after the killing of hundreds of the group's supporters and its leader, Mohammed Yusuf, in prison. Reuters adds that the judge of this federal court in Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, stated in his ruling that security agencies must release Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky. The judge noted that the detention and imprisonment of Mr. Zakzaky since mid-December 2015 is 'illegal, as it violates individual freedoms and is contrary to the constitution.' The judge also added that Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky's wife, who has also been detained, must be released. He rejected the arguments of the Nigerian security agency, which claims that Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky was kept in detention for his protection against his opponents in Zaria. The federal court judge further stated that 'no evidence or complaint from local residents has been presented to me that proves this individual is a nuisance and disrupts the peace of the people.' According to the court ruling, the Nigerian government is required to pay 50 million naira (approximately $165,000) as compensation to Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky and his wife. In response to this federal court ruling, the Nigerian Minister of Justice stated that the government must carefully study the complete ruling, which it does not yet have, before taking any action. Nigeria, with 180 million citizens, is the most populous African country, with most residents in the southern regions being Christians and those in the northern regions being Sunni Muslims. Human Rights Watch estimates that the Shiite population following the Islamic Movement in Nigeria is around three million. This Shiite Islamic movement was established in the 1980s, inspired by the Islamic Revolution in Iran led by Shiite clergy. In this context, the Nigerian army killed '348 Shiites' in a raid last December. Human Rights Watch condemned the massacre of Shiites in Nigeria. Protests were held in Iran to condemn the 'massacre' of Shiites in Nigeria. Iran summoned the Nigerian chargé d'affaires in response to the events in Zaria.