Nigerian inquiry censures army over killing of 347 Shiite Muslims

A public inquiry on Monday accused the Nigerian army of killing 347 Shiite Muslims and dumping them
in a mass grave in the northern city of Kaduna late last year.

Two days of violence began on December 12 when Shiite worshippers attending a religious ceremony obstructed the convoy of Nigeria’s chief of army staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Yusuf Buratai.

“The Nigerian Army used excessive force,” said the 193-page report seen by AFP.

In total 349 people were killed including one soldier and one Shiite worshipper who died later in custody.

The commission, setup by the Kaduna state government, said those responsible for the killings should be prosecuted, confirming the conclusions of an earlier Amnesty International report.

“The Commission therefore recommends that steps should immediately be taken to identify the members of the NA (Nigerian Army) who participated in the killings… with a view to prosecuting them,” it said.

Amnesty International accused the army of deliberately shooting dead the Shiite followers of pro-Iranian cleric Ibrahim Zakzaky, burying them in mass graves and destroying evidence of the crime.

The military maintains that its soldiers acted according to the rules of engagement after the crowd attempted to assassinate Buratai.

Zakzaky, who lost an eye and was left partly paralysed in the violence, has been held since December.

He has previously run up against Nigeria’s secular authorities and has been imprisoned for calling for an Iranian-style revolution to create an Islamic state in the country’s north.