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Police Shoot Another Shiite Member In Abuja

January 27, 2021

Our members were about to enter their vehicles and leave for their various houses but the police arrived and fired at us and the bullets hit the man right inside the vehicle two times.

Hassan Mohammad, a member of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), popularly known as Shiites, was shot by the police during a peaceful protest in Abuja on Wednesday.

This comes barely 24 hours after another member of the group was shot dead during a clash between anti-riot policemen and protesting members of the group on Tuesday. 

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The protest kicked off at Banex Plaza, with members of the group chanting anti-government songs to demand the release of their leader, Sheikh Ibraheem El-Zakzaky, and his wife, Zeenat, from the Kaduna Correctional Centre.

The protest came to an abrupt end at Plaza junction shortly after which police arrived at the scene and opened fire on members who were already boarding their vehicles to leave the premises. 

Mohammad, an indigene of Pandogari village in Niger State, was reportedly shot in the stomach twice and had been receiving treatment in an undisclosed hospital.

The Secretary, Academic Forum of the Movement, Abdullahi Musa, told SaharaReporters that the police opened fire at members of the group when they had concluded the protest and were about to leave for their various destinations.

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He said, "We wanted to hold the protest around NITEL junction but we saw about 20 vehicles of policemen and soldiers and other security personnel ready to attack us. So, we moved to Banex Plaza and started the protest there and we terminated it at Banex junction. 

"Our members were about to enter their vehicles and leave for their various houses but the police arrived and fired at us and the bullets hit the man right inside the vehicle two times."

On Tuesday, one person was reportedly shot dead during a clash between anti-riot policemen and protesting members of the group.

Tuesday’s protest kicked off at the National Human Rights Commission junction in the Maitama area of Abuja, with members of the group also demanding the release of El-Zakzaky and his wife, Zeenat.

It was learnt that a detachment of armed policemen, upon sighting the crowd near Transcorp Hilton junction, fired teargas canisters and live bullets to disperse them.

One of the protesters was said to have been shot in the stomach while some others sustained injuries.

Musa confirmed that the member of the group shot on Tuesday died as a result of the gunshot injury he sustained in his stomach.

The situation was said to have caused pandemonium in the area as motorists and passersby ran in different directions to avoid being caught in the melee.

One person was also shot in the hand on Monday when the police swooped on the sect at the Federal Secretariat, Abuja, during a similar procession.

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Police