BREAKING: Shiites blast Kaduna court over refusal to grant El-Zakzaky bail

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Ibrahim El-Zakzaky.

Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, who leads Shiite group Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN), on Thursday, was brought before the Kaduna High Court.

Nigerian authorities are trying El-Zakzaky for treason and are refusing to grant him bail in contravention of several court orders.

The action has led to many protests by IMN Shiites, the latest of which resulted in a violent invasion of the National Assembly.

Thursday’s hearing was mainly on the application filed in by counsel to the Shiite leader seeking for permission to fly him abroad to New Delhi India for Medical attention.

The court failed to grant El-Zakzaky bail to attend to his health, but postponed the hearing till July 29. IMN Shiites released a statement (read the statement below) condemning the development.

All roads leading to court was blocked by heavily-armed security officers.

El-Zakzaky and his wife Zeenat have been incarcerated since 2015.


PRESS STATEMENT BY THE CHAIRMAN OF THE FREE ZAKZAKY CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE ON THE RULING BY THE KADUNA STATE HIGH COURT ON THE BAIL APPLICATION ON MEDICAL GROUNDS FILED BY COUNSELS TO SHEIKH IBRAHEEM ZAKZAKY AND HIS WIFE ZEENAT IBRAHEEM

Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press,

Good day.

Today, Thursday 18/07/19 the Kaduna state High Court sat to hear an extraordinary application for bail on medical grounds, instituted by counsels to our leader, Sheikh Ibraheem Zakzaky and his wife Malama Zeenat Ibraheem. 

Unfortunately, the court once again shirked in its duties to be on the side of victims of extreme persecution by the government. When it mattered most, the court ducked and failed to stand for truth and justice against tyranny and impunity.

It will be recalled that the applicants are known to be clearly very ill in detention, consequent on the brutal wounds unjustifiably inflicted on them by the state agents in the name of Nigerian army, the resultant prolonged dehumanizing detention in the custody of the Department of State Security (DSS) and the obvious poisoning of the Sheikh. As a result of all these physical and psychological stresses, the Sheikh suffered series of mild strokes and is at the risk of further recurrences. Meanwhile, he lost one eye following the military attack and is at a severe risk of losing sight completely in the other. He is now found to have more than twenty times the toxic levels of lead poison in his body! Similarly, the wife has been under excruciating pains with shrapnel deeply lodged in her body for all these years of inhuman conditions in detention. She now is able to ambulate only with the use of a wheelchair. Even today both were unable to walk to the court room and had to wait outside while the case went on.

In spite of all these, the court once again has allowed the government to kill these innocent people by instalments via unnecessary delays.

We continue to give praises to the Almighty for further evidence that the Nigerian government is both unable and unwilling to serve justice, not even through the courts. This further proves to the world that the Movement and its leader have been and continue to be only victims of impunity and mischievous plots by the Buhari-led government.

We wish to use this opportunity to say a big thank you to all people of conscience, human rights activists and organizations, journalists and all those that continue to be on our side in the dogged campaign for justice for the victims of Zaria genocide. We will continue with our unrelenting campaigns to see that the needful is done.

Thank you and God bless.

SIGNED BY:

Abdurrahman Abubakar Yola 

Chairman, Free Zakzaky Campaign Committee

18/07/19

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