A Shiite community All Ja’afariyya Shia Muslim Community in Nigeria has petitioned President Bola Tinubu over alleged police brutality during a protest on alleged killings of its members.

The Shittes Community in a statement by its spokesperson Abdullahi Hassan on Friday, said the “excessive pressure and restrictions imposed by security forces on Shia Muslims during their religious festivals.”

They called on “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to end the unjust killings, persecution and indiscriminate arrests of the Shia brothers and sisters that participated in the 2024 annual peaceful Arba’een Symbolic Trek in Abuja.”

Hassan said the sect “mourn the loss of four Shia lives, lament the wounding of over 50 others, and condemn the arrest of over a hundred innocent Shia civilians this month.

“We also strongly condemn the forceful removal of Muslim sisters’ divinely ordained dress, exposing their nakedness, and the torture of brothers and sisters in packed cells without regard for their privacy.”

The Association demanded “an urgent end to these unjust actions and urge security forces to cease using the IMN label to perpetrate violence against Shias.

“Instead, we call on security forces to address genuine threats to national peace and security, such as Boko Haram terrorism, banditry, and hunger.”

They called on the government and security agencies to recognize and respect Shia Muslims’ rights to practice their faith without fear of persecution.