The Islamic Movement, also known as the Shiites, on Tuesday, asked the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) to immediately release their members who were arrested for participating in the 2024 Arbaeen Symbolic Trek in Abuja.
The Islamic group, in a statement in Abuja by Shaikh Rabi’u Abdullahi, under the leadership of his eminence, Sheikh Ibraheem Ya’qoub El-Zakzaky (H), said as of the time of this press release, "we do not know the exact number of our brothers and sisters in their custody."
Abdullahi also said that the group did not know the number of those the police had allegedly "killed, as they took away the corpses."
"We would like to condemn, in the strongest terms, this act of terror against our innocent brothers and sisters, whose only fault was exercising their legal rights as enshrined in the Nigerian constitution.
"We would also like to make it categorically clear that the Islamic Movement is not an organisation; it is a concept, an ideology, and a philosophy.
"And therefore, it could not be proscribed. In light of this, we dismiss the NPF’s claim that we are a proscribed organisation. It is not possible to ban a religious movement.
"We call upon relevant authorities and all well-meaning individuals to call the NPF to order before things get out of control, as their intention is to commit even further atrocities against our brothers and sisters in Abuja and surrounding communities, and by extension, the public.
"We demand the unconditional release of all those arrested during the 2024 Abuja Arbaeen", he said.
Abdullahi, who alleged that the police, on Tuesday morning, were in University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Gwagwalada, in search of their members, said the group has briefed their lawyers against the alleged unlawful arrest.
"We wish to draw the attention of the public, including human rights organisations and relevant authorities, to the ongoing act of violence and lawlessness being carried out by the Nigerian Police Force under the disguise of searching for the 2024 Abuja Arbaeen mourners and the activists of the Islamic Movement.
"On Tuesday, the police attacked a private primary school around Airport Road. During the attack, the police destroyed public and private properties and arrested innocent people around the school.
"We earlier reported on August 25, 2024, how a combined team of security forces trooped to a guest house located behind Abattoir in Suleja town, Niger State, at around 4:30 p.m. and committed various acts of terror against innocent civilians.
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"They set ablaze a car parked at the entrance of the house, vandalised many valuable facilities, and arrested dozens of people present at the scene.
"We would also like to draw the attention of the public to the fact that the Police Force have denied our brothers and sisters, arrested on August 25, 2024, access to their families and lawyers.
"All the necessary efforts put in place to reach them and learn about their condition have been deliberately frustrated by agents of the Nigerian Police.
"We have reasons to believe that this is an attempt to bury under the carpet the heinous crime they committed.
"As of the time of writing this release, we do not know the exact number of our brothers and sisters in their custody. Nor do we know the number of those they killed, as they took away the corpses.
"Today, August 27, 2024, around 9:00 a.m., a verifiable report reaching us revealed that the police attacked the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Gwagwalada, FCT Abuja.
"The public could recall that the police conducted a similar operation in 2019 where they arrested patients in the hospital and detained them at SARS Abbatoir. And eventually, those arrested at the hospital died in police custody, and the police dumped their corpses at Asokoro District Hospital.
"In view of the aforesaid crime conducted by the police, we filed a case at the Federal High Court, Abuja. After determination of our case, the Federal High Court of Nigeria has ruled that the arrest of Ja’afar Muhammad by the Nigeria Police at the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Gwagwalada, FCT Abuja, on July 22, 2019, and his subsequent killing on July 24, 2019, at SARS Abattoir, Abuja, were illegal and constituted a gross violation of his fundamental rights as enshrined in Section 33 (1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).
"The judgement was delivered by Justice Z. B. Abubakar of the Abuja Division in response to a case filed by Naziru Isah Abdullahi with suit number FHC/ABJ/CD/409/2020.
"The court also granted an order directing the Inspector General of Police to pay the applicant the sum of N100,000,000.00 (One Hundred Million Naira) only for the unlawful detention and killing of Ja’afar Muhammad.
"Up to this moment, the police have refused to pay the fine, and they are now committing another crime.
"This left us with no option but to file a contempt of court against the IGP and request that the Federal High Court commit the Inspector General of Police to prison", he concluded.
