Amnesty International has disclosed that Nigerians soldiers killed innocent students and burnt some members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, IMN, alive during a clash in December.The Director of Amnesty International research and advocacy for Africa, Netsanet Belay in a report entitled, ‘Unearthing the truth: Unlawful killings and mass cover-up in Zaria’ alleged that the military was trying to cover up its crimes of killing no fewer than 350 people and concealing the evidence.
“The true horror of what happened over those two days in Zaria is only now coming to light. Bodies were left littered in the streets and piled outside the mortuary. Some of the injured were burned alive.
“Our research, based on witness testimonies and analysis of satellite images, has located one possible mass grave. It is time now for the military to come clean and admit where it secretly buried hundreds of bodies.
“IMN supporters, some armed with batons, knives, and machetes – had refused to clear the road near their headquarters, the Hussainiyya, for a military convoy to pass. The army has claimed that IMN supporters attacked the convoy in an attempt to assassinate the chief of army staff. IMN members deny this.
“Following an initial confrontation the military surrounded other locations where IMN supporters had gathered, notably at the residential compound of IMN leader Ibrahim Al-Zakzaky. Some people were killed as a result of indiscriminate fire. Others appeared to have been deliberately targeted.
“All available information indicates that the deaths of protestors were the consequence of excessive, and arguably, unnecessary use of force.”
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