Police operatives and members of the proscribed Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), also known as Shi’ites, clashed on Friday, during a procession by the group as part of activities to mark the International Quds Day in Kaduna.
The Shi’ite members came out in their large numbers for a peaceful procession in the state capital but the Police attempted to disperse them on grounds that they had been proscribed in the state.
The Shiites had gathered near the Katsina Roundabout along Ahmadu Bello Way in Kaduna metropolis to commence the procession before the policemen arrived to stop them.
The efforts of the police to stop them created panic among Kaduna city residents particularly among those with businesses along Ahmadu Bello Way as the police fired tear gas to disperse the group.
Speaking during the procession, Professor Dauda Nalado, a member of the IMN, said the Quds Day is celebrated annually during the month of Ramadan.
According to him, “The great global leader of the Islamic Revolution, Imaam Ruhullah Al-Musawi Al-Khomeini, invited Muslims and non-Muslims with humanity at heart to show solidarity with the innocent and oppressed people of Palestine and against the brutality of the usurper, apartheid, and the illegal state of Israel. The imam declared the last Friday of each Ramadan as the International Quds Day.
“Since 1980, the Quds in Britain, France, Sweden, America, Germany, Canada, Australia, and numerous countries in Asia, Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, etc. The Islamic Movement, under the leadership of his Eminence Sayyid Dr. Ibraheem Ya’qoub El-Zakzaky (H), has been observing this event for decades in Nigeria. In fact, one of the reasons of the Zaria massacre executed by the Buhari regime in 2015 was to kill Sayyid Ibraheem El-Zakzaky and crush this noble movement for justice, all due to the staunch support for the Palestinian cause.
“Hitherto, the public could recall that on 25 July, 2014, Nigerian soldiers attacked the Quds Day procession in support of Palestine in Zaria, resulting in the assassination of 34 people, including three biological children of this great African leader.”
He added, “For six months now, the Zionist State has killed almost 33,000 Palestinians and wounded almost 80,000, of whom more than half are women and children. They have destroyed buildings and turned Gaza City into rubble. They have violated all international human rights rules and committed war crimes with impunity.
“It is pertinent to remind us that since the illegal state was carved out in 1948, the Palestinians have been subjugated and subjected to oppressive rule, controlling and humiliating every aspect of their daily lives. This current brutality by the Zionists was launched after a retaliative “Aqsa storm operation” by the Palestinians on 7th October 2023. These developments signal the final blow to Zionism.”
He called on all people and nations with humanity to condemn the genocide against the Palestinian population and stop it, saying, “Unfortunately, the United States and the United Kingdom are supporters of this genocide.”
He thanked South Africa and the axis of resistance comprising Iran, Lebanon (Hizbullah) Syria, Iraq, and Yemen for their support and condemned the continued brutal genocide of the Palestinian population and support the oppressed people of Palestine in their just struggle.
He then called on the Nigerian state to sever diplomatic ties with Israel and also called for a permanent ceasefire and a comprehensive package for the freedom of Palestine.