IPOB: Hoodlums allegedly attack Sowore as Nnamdi Kanu’s trial resumes in Abuja, DSS bars journalists, lawyers from court [VIDEO]
Two suspected hoodlums have been arrested near the Federal High Court in Abuja where Nnamdi Kanu’s trial resumed, Thursday.
Kanu, who leads the secessionist Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) is being tried for treason among other charges.
Activist publisher Omoyele Sowore, who was dressed in Igbo attire in an apparent show of solidarity with IPOB, was reportedly assaulted by hoodlums while security operatives stood by and laughed.
His supporters alleged that the police and the Department of State Services (DSS) allowed the suspected thugs near the court premises so that they could carry out the attack on Sowore.
Reporters identified two of the alleged attackers and pressured the police to take them into custody, a video shared online showed. One man could be heard criticising the police for “allowing the attack to happen”.
“If it was one big politician that was attacked, you would have arrested the hoodlums. But because it was Sowore, you want to let it go,” he said.
Reporters at the venue say journalists are being barred from entering the court premises and from recording the presence of other suspected hoodlums near the venue.
Some lawyers, including ones working for the government, were also barred from entering the court, journalists at the venue told GoldMyne TV.
Kanu is expected to appear before Justice Binta Nyako, provided the Department of State Services (DSS) produces him in court.
The IPOB leader was rearrested in Kenya and repatriated to Nigeria in July to continue his trial. Kanu was first arrested and prosecuted in 2017 by the Nigerian government for agitating for Biafra. He was released the same year by Justice Nyako, but he jumped bail and absconded to the United Kingdom, UK.
Ahead of the trial, the UK government had issued a travel advisory to its citizens against travelling to the Southeast over what it termed “heightened security presence.”
