Nigeria warned over Shia Muslim crackdown

Nigeria on Wednesday faced calls to prosecute soldiers for using excessive force against Shia Muslim protesters, exactly three years after a military crackdown killed more than 300 Shias.

Nigeria on Wednesday faced calls to prosecute soldiers for using excessive force against Shia Muslim protesters, exactly three years after a military crackdown killed more than 300 Shias.

Human Rights Watch said the security forces had shown a “pattern of brutality” towards the Shia Community in Nigeria and warned such action could worsen national security.

More than 40 Shias were killed in three days of protests in the capital, Abuja, in October when the security forces fired live bullets at crowds.

Aniete Ewang, Nigeria researcher at Human Rights Watch, said: “The repression against the Shia Muslims by government security forces risks creating grievances that could worsen Nigeria’s already precarious security situation.