Iranian Parliament Condemns Massacre of Muslims in Nigeria

The Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission denounced the recent killing of a number of Shiite Muslims in Nigeria, calling on the foreign ministry to follow up on the issue via international bodies.

“The news of the brutal killing of oppressed Shiites in Nigeria by the country’s army hurt the feelings of millions of conscious humans, especially Muslims across the world,” the parliamentary commission said in a statement on Monday.

“Such behavior shows the height of imprudence of a country’s governing institutions in managing that country…,” the statement read.

The Iranian parliamentarians further called on the foreign ministry to summon the Nigerian ambassador and voice Tehran’s strong protest to the incident and pursue the issue through the United Nations and international human rights bodies.

The statement came after Nigerian military forces killed at least 20 Shiite Muslims who had gathered to attend a religious ceremony north of the country, and besieged the home of the leader of the Shiite movement.

According to reports, Nigerian soldiers on Sunday killed dozens of Shiite Muslims, including two members of the family of Sayyid Ibrahim Zakzaky, the leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, and senior members of his movement.

Zeenat, the wife of the leader of Islamic Movement of Nigeria, Ibrahim Zakzaky, and Aliy, Zakzaky’s son, were among those killed during a raid on Zakzaky’s home by the Nigerian Army.

The army forces are also reported to have arrested the senior cleric.
Three of Mr. Zakzaky’s sons had been killed in a similar attack by the Nigerian Army in July 2014.

The Islamic Movement insists its members did not attack the convoy of the Chief of Army staff, Tukur Buratai, as alleged by the Nigerian Army, Abuja-based newspaper The Premium Times reported on Monday.

Heavy fighting broke out late Saturday night into the early hours of Sunday between soldiers of Nigerian army and members of the movement in the city of Zaria in northern Nigeria after the army surrounded the house of leader of the movement.

The movement in a statement by Ibrahim Musa, head of its Media Forum, said apart from Mr. Zakzaky’s son and wife, other prominent leaders of the group were also killed.