Ahlul Bayt News Agency - Nigerian troops on Monday evacuated the bodies of Shiite Muslims killed in two days of clashes with the army in northern Zaria, its spokesman and residents said.
The army carried out deadly crackdowns on Saturday and early Sunday against the armless Islamic Movement of Nigeria led by Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky, whose whereabouts were unknown, they said.
"We have reports that bodies of hundreds of our members killed outside the house of our leader are being evacuated in trucks by soldiers," Islamic Movement spokesman Ibrahim Musa told AFP.
"I actually don’t believe this is a sectarian issue. I don’t think Nigerian army is particularly sectarian. What I believe… it is actually a political thing. Sheikh Zakzaky is actually extremely popular not just among the Shia community but among the Sunni community, even Salafi community, Christian community" said an activist in London.
"Islamic Movement of Nigeria, which he is the leader of, has got a faction which is a Christian faction. And he’s extremely popular with the people because he actually serves people, he believes in sort of serving all the communities" said London activist Shajareh.
The group's spokesman said the victims of the violence included Zakzaky's wife, son and the Islamic Movement spokesman.
"We can't give a precise figure of the deaths but it is huge given the number of the members that answered the call to protect the house from the invading soldiers," he said.
"I can confirm that the wife of our leader Zeenat Ibrahim and her son Ali were among the dead. Our national spokesman Ibrahim Usman was also killed," he said.
Musa said the whereabouts of Zakzaky were unknown.
"We have been getting conflicting reports with some saying that he has been taken away by soldiers while others are saying that he has been injured or killed," he said.
Witnesses also spoke of soldiers removing bodies around Zakzaky's house.
"This morning, soldiers started evacuating corpses of followers of Zakzaky in trucks for possible disposal," resident Bashir Bello told AFP.
"A large number of his followers were gunned down around his house on Saturday through Sunday morning where they had congregated to protect the house from military invasion," he said.
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source : websites
Monday
14 December 2015
2:56:06 PM
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Nigeria ISIS-like army evacuates corpses of Shiite Muslims in trucks after deadly invasion
Nigerian troops on Monday evacuated the bodies of Shiite Muslims killed in two days of clashes with the army in northern Zaria, its spokesman and residents said.