The governor of Nigeria’s Kaduna State issued an order on October 7, 2016, banning the Shia religious group the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN). The order is the latest in a series of repressive actions by the Kaduna State government and Nigeria’s security forces targeting the group. The following statement is from Mausi Segun, senior Nigeria researcher at Human Rights Watch:

“The ongoing mob attacks against adherents of the Shia religious faith across five northern Nigeria states is the latest in a string of abuses in which government forces have also been implicated. The move to ban the Shia umbrella body, the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN), by the Kaduna State government appears to have triggered a wave of discrimination and violence against Shia elsewhere in the country. Authorities should take urgent steps to respect the rights of Shia to security and religious freedom. They should also ensure accountability for violence against the group, including the killing of 347 IMN members by soldiers in Zaria in December 2015.”