Nigerian government should have the account of clashes between military and shiite

The United States has noted that there was no record that the
Nigerian Government or military authorities had demanded
accountability from the soldiers implicated in the December 2015
clash between the Army and members of the Islamic Movement in
Nigeria led by Ibrahim El-Zakzaky.
The US stated this in the International Religious Freedom Report
for 2017 released yesterday by the Department of State’s Bureau
of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour.
The report also noted that the Nigerian government continued to
hold El-Zakzaky and restrict the free movement and association of
his followers.
It read, “Human rights groups continued to report the Federal
Government often failed to prevent, quell, or respond to violence
affecting religious groups, particularly in the North Eastern and
central regions of the country.
“In November, Kano State police fired tear gas and bullets, killing
three members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria during its
annual Ashura procession.
“The government continued to detain the leader of the IMN, the
country’s largest Shia group, and restrict the activities, free
movement, and free association of its members.
“There were no reports of accountability for soldiers implicated in
the December 2015 clash between the army and IMN members
that, according to a Kaduna State Government report and reports
from non-government observers, left at least 348 IMN members
and one soldier dead, with IMN members buried in a mass grave.”
It, however, alleged that dozens of IMN members were still being
held since December 2015, charged with the death of the soldier.
It recalled that in August, the then Acting President Yemi Osinbajo
announced the creation of a Presidential Investigative Panel that
was committed to transparently and credibly investigating human
rights abuses committed by the military.
It said the IMN, however, publicly stated that it would boycott the
panel because it doubted its sincerity.
External human rights observers, it noted, also expressed concern
over the lack of transparency and rigour of the panel.
The report noted that the Nigerian government had yet to obey
court orders on the detained El-Zakzaky and his wife.
“The government stated publicly that Sheikh El-Zakzaky, leader of
the IMN and a prominent Shia cleric, would remain in what it said
was ‘protective custody’ pending the appeal of the December 2016
decision of the Federal High Court in Abuja that the government
must release him.