Nigeria adjourns trial of Sheikh Zakzaky

AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): A court in Nigeria’s Kaduna state adjourned the trial of top Shia cleric Sheikh Ibrahim El-Zakzaky and his wife, citing their illness.

According to the Islamic Human Rights Commission, the leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) and his wife Zeenat had been scheduled to attend the court on Thursday but couldn’t do it due to their illness.

Hence, the judge, Gideon Kurada adjourned the trail to February 24 and 25 at the request of Demi Falana, the senior cleric’s lawyer.

Falana told reporters that the two will attend the court next time if their health improves.

Zakzaky has been in detention since December 2015 after his residence in the city of Zaria was raided by Nigeria’s forces, during which he was beaten and lost vision in his left eye.

During the brutal arrest, three of his sons were also killed, his wife sustained serious wounds, and more than 300 of his followers were killed.

Zakzaky was charged in April 2018 with murder, culpable homicide, unlawful assembly, disruption of public peace, and other accusations. He has pleaded not guilty, vehemently rejecting all accusations brought up against him.

In 2016, Nigeria’s federal high court ordered Zakzaky’s unconditional release from jail following a trial, but the government has so far refused to set him free.