The Federal Government has
commenced negotiations with the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, IMN, over their
demand for the release of their detained leader, Sheikh Ibraheem El-Zakzaky who
has been held in security custody since 2015, a source has claimed.
This development was confirmed on
Thursday by a source within the top hierarchy of IMN in Abuja.
According to the source, the
Federal Government has issued approval to mediators drawn from members of the
diplomatic corps to meet with Sheikh El-Zakzaky with a view to resolving the
impasse between the Muslim group and the Nigerian authorities.
“We have some negotiations going
on behind the scenes through the intervention of some European countries who
are interested in seeing the face-off between our group and the government
resolved through dialogue.
“Members of the diplomatic corps
here in Abuja have been working right round the clock to make resolving this
matter a possibility. We have started interacting with the government in the
background.
“The government, though
reluctantly, has given some of the mediators in the matter concerning our
movement necessary approval to meet with Sheikh El-Zakzaky so that progress can
be made.
“The government is been persuaded
to see reasons to stop the persecution of Sheikh El-Zakzaky and his followers,”
the source told our correspondent.
Dailypost reports that Sheikh
El-Zakzaky, who is in his mid-sixties, lost his left eye when security forces
raided his home in Zaria Kaduna state more than three years ago.
The raid started after Shi’ites
had a clash with the convoy of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.Gen Tukur Buratai,
during a procession on the streets of Kaduna.
His wife also sustained serious
wounds while more than 300 of his followers and three of his sons were killed
in the violence that ensued.
The cleric has been kept in
custody along with his wife and a large number of his followers ever since.
El-Zakzky’s followers have been
holding protests mainly in Abuja since 2015, calling for his immediate release.
The Government is yet to confirm
such negotiation.
Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com