A PROTEST march by members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, IMN, demanding the release of their leader, Ibrahim Zakzaky in Abuja has turned violent.

Daily Trust reports that trouble started when about 10,000 members of the sect, who were on their way to Unity Fountain, Abuja, on Friday, November 10, reacted to an attempt by a detachment of the police to stop them.

Trouble started when a large number of the sect members, who were from the Federal Secretariat and heading towards the Unity Fountain in Abuja, refused to turn back as a police van blocked the Shehu Shagari Way.

The police fired live ammunition and tear gas canister to disperse the crowd, but the defiant protesters pushed through the barricade.

A member of the sect, who spoke on condition of anonymity, condemned the attack on the sect as undemocratic and a violation of the rights of the sect to peaceful protest.

“We have been having this protest peacefully. Why did the police come to attack us?” he asked.

The sect members, who were marking the religious Arbaeen Trek as well as pressing for their leader’s release, later concluded the march at the NICON Junction in Maitama, Abuja.

–  Nov 12, 2017 @ 17:05 GMT |