Zaria Quds Day massacres

Zaria Quds massacres (or Zaria Quds Days massacres) refers to an incident on July 26, 2014, when the Nigerian Army opened fire on the members of Islamic Movement in Zaria, Nigeria, who were taking part in Quds day rallies, and killed 35 people, including three sons of Ibrahim Zakzaky leader of the movement. The Movement and Islamic Human rights groups have claimed that Nigerian government's close ties with Israel is responsible for the attacks on the pro-Palestinian group.

Cause of the incident

From reports gathered from eyewitnesses, it was said that the incident happened following the resistance of Shi’ite members to allow a military patrol van to pass through their procession. Trouble started, according to Sunday Vanguard sources, when the sect members, on approaching a military check-point, were ordered by the soldiers there to take another route in view of the insecurity challenge in Kaduna State. It was said that the Shiite group rebuffed the order and, in the process, a standoff ensued between the protesters and the soldiers. This development, according to eyewitnesses, resulted in soldiers firing warning shots into the air to scare the protesters. The Shiites were said to have defied the shots and surged forward while throwing stones at the soldiers. However, addressing journalists, yesterday, on the incident, Zakzaky said, “I am appealing to my followers to be patient and remain calm. After the burial of those killed, we will decide what action to take. I have communicated with the authorities, and they are all claiming not to be aware of the operation. It is my belief that the operation was ordered from Abuja”.

Ibrahim Musa, the editor of Al-Mizan, the weekly newspaper published by the group, said in a statement, “Reports reaching our news desk now indicated that some soldiers of the Nigerian army have opened fire on the tail end of the Quds procession held after Jumaat prayers in Zaria, Kaduna State. “... The Quds procession was held today peacefully in more than 10 Nigerian cities. Why the attack on the Zaria procession?"

The Director of Army Public Relations, Brig. –Gen. Olajide Laleye, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) by telephone that the investigation would establish what happened. “However, what is already clear is that Nigerian Army troops did not initiate firing and only acted in self-defence after being fired upon,” Laleye said.

Motives behind the attack

IMN and Islamic Human rights Commission among other Islamic NGO's have claimed that Nigerian government's close ties with Israel prompted the attack. The Chair of IHRC, Massoud Shadjareh said:

This is a heinous act, that sadly is not isolated in the history of this event in Nigeria. It appears that Nigerian security co-operation with Israel grows year on year, with its military targeting peaceful pro-Palestinian activism. It is disgusting. We extend our condolences to the families of the deceased, who must be considered far flung victims of the latest Israeli aggression.

S.M. Mohamed Idris, Chariman of Citizens International, Malaysia said in a written statement that the killings must be seen in the context of the growing security co-operation between Israel and Nigeria after President Goodluck Jonathan’s visit to Israel last October. "The crackdown on pro-Palestinian protesters appears to be the consideration for the security assistance provided by the Zionist regime. It is a shame that the current Nigerian government has abandoned the decades-long support of the Nigerian people and government for the Palestinian liberation struggle."