By Baron Ike
Scores of people including a police sergeant were killed on Monday, November 14 in Kano in a bloody gun duel involving the police and members of Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) popularly known in local parlance as Shi’ite.
The event took place at the outskirt of Kan municipal in Kano on Monday morning. The clash which occurred at Tamburawa general area, outskirt of Kano municipal by 8.00am was triggered by effort by the police to restore order on the strategic Kano–Zaria federal highway following report of breakdown of law.
Several women and children were injured during the mayhem that lasted for about 2 hours.
But the police said only nine people were dead. The Kano Commissioner of Police, Rabiu Yusuf who put the official death figure at nine said it included the police officer.
But an eye witness Ali Dan’Ali, said, “At least 20 members of our group that included able bodied men, women and children were martyred by the police on our way Zaria”.
Dan’Ali said: “We came under attack by the police around Amana city, and several hundreds were injured in what appear a coordinated attempt to broke our procession and disrupted the historic trek.”
Yusuf told reporter when normally had returned that: “thousands of Shi’ite members obstructed motorist and other road users free access to Kano-Kaduna express way. They also attacked innocent citizens, damaged public and personal property thereby causing mayhem that could lead to general disturbance of public peace in the state. A combined team of PMF,CTU, SARS and conventional police were deployed to restore peace came under attack. Shi’ite members who were armed with bow and arrow, catapult with metal bolts, cutlasses attacked the police team and killed a police sergeant, and critically injured others.”
The police commissioner added that “they snatched an AK47 riffle from a policeman and used it on the security agents.”
He said the AK 47 riffle was recovered, eight Shi’ite members who were fatally injured and rushed to hospital were confirmed dead by Doctor on call.