The Shia Muslim sect, Monday, said that the wife of its leader Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky has been killed in clashes with the military in northern Zaria town.
The Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) alleged that Zeenat Ibraheem had been killed, along with the couple’s son Sayyid Ibraheem Zakzaky.
Sheikh Zakzaky was arrested by soldiers who besieged his home amid allegations that members of the sect attempted to assassinate army chief Gen Tukur Buratai in Zaria on Saturday.
However, the IMN denied the allegation, and accused the military of killing at least 20 of its members.
Meanwhile, reports from Zaria also say soldiers have destroyed the main shrine of the country’s main Shia Muslim sect as a crackdown on the movement continues for a third day.
Residents of the town told the BBC Hausa service that the home of the sect’s leader, Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky, was also demolished.
The Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) says at least 20 of its members were killed on Saturday after soldiers opened fire on them.
The army has not commented on the allegation.
Earlier, it accused the sect of attempting to assassinate army chief Gen Tukur Buratai.
Members of the IMN sect have a history of clashing with Nigeria’s security forces.
More than 30 people were killed in July last year when soldiers and the IMN clashed during a religious procession in Zaria.
Meanwhile, a leading Muslim human right group in the country has called for an independent investigation into the deadly incident in which the army allegedly killed about 100 Shia Muslims in Zaria town.
“We denounce the well-known belligerent posture of the Nigerian military towards unarmed civilians as manifested in this massacre. It is reckless, lawless and barbaric,” the Muslim Rights Concern (Muric) said in a statement.
“It is wanton exhibition of lack of respect for human life… It is impunity of the highest order,” it added.
The Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) claims that at least 100 of its followers were killed by the army and its shrine demolished in Zaria.
The home of its leader, Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky, was also destroyed, and he was arrested, it said.
The army has accused the IMN of blocking roads during a religious procession and of attempting to assassinate army chief Gen Tukur Buratai.
However, Muric rejected the army’s claim and called on President Muhammadu Buhari to take action, saying the army must be held accountable.
“Our democracy is a fraud if soldiers will not submit themselves to civil authority,” it said.
BBC
