The Presidency has yet to comment on the violent clash between members of the Shi’ite Islamic Movement and the Nigerian Army at the weekend that left at least 60 people dead and hundreds injured.
The leader of the group, Ibrahim El-Zazaky, and his wife are in protective custody. A son of El-Zazaky was reportedly among those killed.
Trouble started when the movement’s members blocked a popular road in Zaria, preventing the convoy of the chief of army staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai, from passing, even after two generals had appealed to them.
The silence of the Nigerian federal government on the crisis has attracted criticisms. Tension is growing in cities like Kano and Kaduna due to the Shi’ite leader’s arrest.
