Policemen deployed to stop the #FreeNnamdiKanuNow protest have arrested Nnamdi Kanu’s brother and his lawyer, Aloy Ejimakor, according to convener of the protest, Omoyele Sowore.
In a post on his X (formerly Twitter) account, Sowore alleged that policemen arrested Kanu’s brother, Ejimakor, and other bystanders.
“The @PoliceNG team deployed to brutalize #FreeNnamdiKanuNow protesters arrested Nnamdi Kanu’s brother, and his lawyer, @AloyEjimakor, as well as innocent bystanders. They were beaten and taken to the FCT command. The police must release them immediately!,” Sowore wrote
Daily Trust had reported how the police used live bullets to disperse the protesters seeking the release of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), who has been in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) since his re-arrest in June 2021.
There were reports that security operatives fired several teargas canisters at commuters around the Central Business District of Abuja, causing panic and disrupting early morning traffic.
Major roads around the city centre were also barricaded, leading to heavy gridlock and confusion.
Ahead of the demonstration, the Nigeria Police Force had designated parts of the capital as “no-protest zones.”
Police spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin, had said a Federal High Court order in Abuja had restrained groups from holding protests within and around key government buildings, including Aso Rock, the National Assembly, Force Headquarters, Court of Appeal, Eagle Square, and Shehu Shagari Way.
He urged all groups—whether for or against Kanu’s continued detention—to comply strictly with the court’s directive.
Kanu’s trial on terrorism-related charges continues at the Federal High Court, Abuja, while Sowore and other activists maintain calls for his unconditional release.
