Some soldiers have been caught maltreating members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, popularly known as Shi’ites, arrested for allegedly attacking Guaranty Trust Bank in the Gwarinpa 3rd Avenue Area of Abuja on Tuesday.
The Shi’ites were on their annual symbolic trek between FCT metropolis and Mararaba in Nasarawa State when security officers, including soldiers, accosted them.
Eyewitnesses told FIJ that some of the Shi’ites were accused of attempting to burgle the bank before they were apprehended by soldiers. In a video obtained by FIJ, the soldiers are seen man-handling the suspects.
In the middle of an expressway, two soldiers pin a Shi’ite to a point and repeatedly hit him with sticks. A distance away, two other soldiers also drag and beat another detainee. In front of the bank, a gun-wielding soldier holds a knife to the neck of a Shi’ite while another beats him. He is then dragged closer to the bank, stabbed in the leg multiple times, and abandoned in the pool of his blood.
Onyema Nwachukwu, the spokesman for the Nigerian Army did not answer FIJ’s phone calls for comments. He has also not responded to a text message sent.
See below link to the full video:
Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria
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