Nigeria denies Sheikh Zakzaky proper medical treatment: Cleric's brother
A brother of Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky, the jailed leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), has accused officials in the African country of medical negligence.
Madamasi Yaqub, Zakzaky’s half-brother, told Press TV in an interview aired on Monday, that the cleric’s health was currently better than the time he was brutally attacked by Nigerian army last year, but added that Nigerian officials still denied the Sheikh proper medical treatment.
He said there were still problems with Sheikh Zakzaky’s eyes, adding that his left eye was not working but his right eye could be treated if the Nigerian army allowed the transfer of the cleric to a proper medical facility.
“They have many reasons to deny him medical care. Their mission was to kill him and it was God’s miracle that he survived,” Yaqub said, adding that the Nigerian army knew that killing the cleric could have huge repercussions.
He said Sheikh Zakzaky was actively performing his leadership roles for the Islamic Movement in Nigeria despite his poor health conditions behind the bars.
Yaqub also blamed the US, Israel and Saudi Arabia for the increasing persecution and harassment of Shias in Nigeria.
“They will continue to do everything possible to exert their hegemony over Nigeria’s economy and political affairs,” he said through a translator.
Yaqub said a recent attack on the followers of the IMN in Kano, which came during the Arba’een mourning rituals in the city, was a plot to annihilate the Islamic movement.
Yaqub said some elements in the army have been irked by the growing popularity of Shia movement in the country and in Africa in general.
Nearly 100 IMN supporters were killed last Monday, after Nigerian forces fired live rounds and tear gas at mourners during a peaceful march held ahead of the Arba’een mourning rituals, which mark 40 days after the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein (PBUH), the third Shia Imam and the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).
Nigeria has stepped up crackdown on the IMN since December 2015, when the army killed hundreds of the movement’s followers. Sheikh Zakzaky himself was injured in the attack and was taken into custody along with dozens of his supporters.
Last week, authorities also destroyed a number of buildings belonging to the Islamic Movement in Nigeria
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