Nigeria government, US hampering Sheikh Zakzaky’s treatment in India: IMN
The Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), whose leader Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky has been transferred to India to receive medical care, says the Nigerian and US governments have been trying to hamper the cleric’s treatment.
In a statement published on Wednesday, the IMN complained that the Nigerian government was trying “to frustrate doctors from offering emergency treatment” to Sheikh Zakzaky through the security agents that it has sent along with the sheikh to India.
It said the Nigerian security agents were colluding with foreign security agents, who are believed to be working for the US government.
The IMN further quoted a source as saying that before Sheikh Zakzaky’s arrival at New Delhi’s Madenta Hospital, officials from the American Embassy in India had “threatened” the hospital’s management not to admit the clergyman.
“Even as the doctors were enthusiastically waiting to receive the Sheikh to save his life, the American secret agents have threatened the hospital officials not to go ahead to treat the Sheikh at the hospital,” the IMN said.
The group urged the international community to call on the Nigerian government “to stop playing with the life of” the senior Muslim cleric.
Sheikh Zakzaky and his wife had been kept in custody since December 2015, when security forces killed more than 300 of IMN members during a raid on the city of Zaria.
The cleric lost his left eyesight and his wife also sustained serious wounds in that raid.
Earlier this month, the couple was granted bail by a court in order to seek treatment abroad.
NGO demands respect for Zakzaky’s rights
In a related development on Wednesday, the Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC), a London-based NGO, urged human rights campaigners to write to their respective countries’ envoys in India about Zakzaky’s situation.
In a sample letter released on its website, the IHRC urged activists to demand that the Indian authorities cease their harassment of Sheikh Zakzaky and his wife.
“I am writing to ask you to make immediate representations to the Indian government to respect the rights and freedoms of the Sheikh and his wife and allow their medical treatment unmolested and without restrictions. It appears from reports that the Indian police and security services are collaborating with the Nigerian security services in perpetuating the illegal detention of the pair,” the letter reads.
It said Nigerian and Indian security services have prevented the couple from leaving the hospital, blocked their access to the medical team, and withheld their legal documents.
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