Shiites express joy over court’s judgment on El-Zakzaky, wife

The Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), otherwise known as Shiite, has praised the  recent court verdict that freed its leader, Sheikh Ibrahim el-Zakzaky, and his wife who had been in custody since December 2015.

This was contained in a statement issued to newsmen in Kaduna on Saturday, and signed by the spokesman of the group, Ibrahim Musa.

According to the statement, “the judgment had vindicated the movement’s position since the brutal attack on its leaders, members and structures last December.

“We have said many times that the continuos detention of our leader  is a clear infringement of his rights as guaranteed by known laws and as affirmed by this ruling.

“The judge showed a full grasp of all the issues at stake as he succinctly captured it when he said he viewed the matter to be that of religious intolerance, where a majority Sunnah is oppressing a minority Shi’ah.

“He was right. Instruments of governance were deployed to execute sectarian and foreign agenda at all levels. The government appeared to have adopted an official policy from the start of demonising the Islamic Movement and its leadership.

“That was used as the premise on which to justify their extermination plot, evident from the farce they staged and videotaped at Hussainiyyah and other  showed on NTA and media outlets.

“It is also clear from the way the military and its officers met various people and groups to contract them to smudge the movement in order to validate the massacre.”