The Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC) has called
on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate the massacre of
nearly 1000 civilians in Zaria, Nigeria that took place last December.
According to the filing submitted by the IHRC, Nigerian soldiers
attacked unarmed members and supporters of the Islamic Movement of
Nigeria (IMN) in Zaria, Kaduna State on December 12-14, 2015, and their
actions constitute crimes against humanity.
"The crimes committed between the 12th and 14th December 2015 in
Zaria, Kaduna State, by the Nigerian army amount to crimes against
humanity. The crimes committed by the Nigerian army meet all the
necessary legal requirements to warrant a preliminary investigation by
the ICC prosecutor,” the petition reads.
According to sources gathered by the IHRC, 217 civilians were
confirmed killed in the attacks, while 219 are in detention and another
482 are missing.
Most deaths were caused by gunshots, but there have been reports of
victims being burned alive and hacked with machetes. IMN leader Sheikh
Ibrahim Zakzaky, who is believed to be detained, had signs of torture
and electrocution on his body.
Reports of sexual violence perpetrated by Nigerian soldiers in Zaria
have also emerged. According to reports, several women were raped by
soldiers, while others had their breasts cut off.
The IHRC alleges that this attack on unarmed citizens was
premeditated and intended to wipe out the IMN. Eyewitnesses reported
that soldiers were seen celebrating and shouting slogans such as, “no
more Shias in Nigeria.”
While the Kaduna State government set up a Judicial Commission of
Inquiry, the IHRC believes it is “insufficiently independent and
impartial” and therefore cannot be trusted to effectively investigate
the killings and hold the perpetrators accountable.
- Read the full press release below:
The International Criminal Court is being urged to investigate the
massacre of nearly 1000 civilians in Nigeria last December at the hands
of the country's armed forces.
IHRC has called on the international tribunal which has a mandate to
prosecute people for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide,
to open a preliminary enquiry into the events in Zaria last year in
which soldiers attacked the Islamic Movement of Nigeria's (IMN)
supporters, symbols and property.
The assault over two days in the northern Nigerian city left a trail
of bloodshed and destruction including the shooting of the movement's
leader Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky and his wife Zeenat. Both are currently
believed to be in military custody, detained without charge.
In the filing submitted to the ICC today IHRC writes: "The crimes
committed between the 12th and 14th December 2015 in Zaria, Kaduna
State, by the Nigerian army amount to crimes against humanity. The
crimes committed by the Nigerian army meet all the necessary legal
requirements to warrant a preliminary investigation by the ICC
prosecutor."
Information obtained by IHRC indicates that 217 people were confirmed
killed in the attacks, another 219 are in detention, and 482 are still
missing. The number of injured is believed to run into many hundreds.
IHRC's filing to the ICC is largely based on eye-witness evidence of the
army's assault.
The majority of deaths were caused by gunshots fired by soldiers.
Cases of people being burnt alive have also emerged. Injuries caused by
machetes or other knife wounds have also been found on the corpses, and
could be the work of the criminal groups that perpetrated acts of
looting and mutilation alongside the military. Signs of torture and
electrocution have been evidenced on the body of the IMN leader Sheikh
Zakzaky and other detainees, two of whom died as a result thereof.
Sexual violence has also been reported, including cases of rape
against women affiliates of the IMN. A 14-year old female witness told
IHRC that the military shot her in her private parts when she resisted
attempts by soldiers to rape her. Some women reportedly had their
breasts cut off and others were deliberatelly shot in the pelvic region
damaging their uteri.
Photographic evidence has been obtained along with testimonies of
mass graves where the army is reported to have buried fatalities from
the killing spree. Some corpses were allegedly incinerated, apparently
in order to conceal any evidence.
In its submission IHRC says that the evidence suggests that the
army's assault was a systematic and pre-planned attempt to snuff out the
IMN whose growing popularity have made it a thorn in the side of
Nigerian governments. A similar army assault in July 2014 during a
religious preocession led to the deaths of 34 IMN members including
three sons of Sheikh Zakzaky who were apparently singled out for
execution.
Eyewitnesses have reported that during December's violence soldiers
were seen celebrating and chanting slogans against the IMN, such as ‘we
have finished with the Shia and Zakzaky’ and ‘no more Shias in Nigeria’.
Although the IMN has support among Nigeria's Sunnis and Shias it is
often portrayed by its detractors as a Shia organisation.
During the violence soldiers used automatic weapons, explosives and
armoured vehicles against unarmed civilians. This, along with the
destruction of places of worship, graves and other buildings associated
with the IMN, appears to support the contention that the attack was
aimed at fatally damaging or eliminating the IMN.
Although the state government in Kaduna has set up a Judicial
Commission of Inquiry IHRC believes it is insufficiently independent and
impartial to be able to hold those responsible to account, nor is there
any reasonable prospect of any prosecutions. In his speech announcing
the inquiry state governor Malam Nasir el-Rufai listed a range of
grievances against the IMN, which is indicative of bias against the IMN
from the start. He was also responsible for demolishing IMN properties
before setting up the commission of inquiry.
IHRC chair Massoud Shadjareh said: "The scale and brutality of this
massacre and unwillingess of the Nigerian government to implement due
process makes it essential for the international court to investigate.
The faiure of the international community to act against atrocities on
this scale stands to have grave consequences."
The ICC submission to the ICC can be read in full at http://ihrc.org.uk/publications/reports/11646-investigating-the-attack-against-the-islamic-movement-of-nigeria-on-12-13-december-2015-in-zaria
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