Protests in Nigeria Claim Lives: Rights Group Reports 13 Deaths

A rights group reported on Friday that at least 13 people were killed during major rallies in Nigeria against the country’s economic woes, which turned violent in many areas.

Authorities claimed four people were murdered by a bomb and hundreds were arrested during the protests, which prompted curfews in various areas.

In an interview, Amnesty International’s Nigeria director, Isa Sanusi, stated that it independently verified the deaths recorded by witnesses, victims’ relatives, and lawyers.

Following the robbery of government and public buildings, Nigerian police arrested over 300 demonstrators and imposed curfews in the northern states of Kano and Katsina.

One police officer was also murdered, with numerous others injured.

The protests were primarily about food shortages and alleged poor governance in the country. Nigeria’s public officials, who are usually accused of corruption, are among the highest paid in Africa, a stark contrast in a country with some of the world’s poorest and most hungry people, despite being one of the continent’s top oil producers.

Protesters, carrying placards, bells, and Nigeria’s green-and-white flag, chanted songs while listing their demands, including the reinstatement of gas and electricity subsidies, which were removed as part of the government’s audacious reforms to grow the economy and have had a knock-on effect on the price of just about everything else.