World News – CA – Nigerian security forces open fire on protesters in Lagos

Nigerian security forces opened fire on hundreds of protesters in Lagos, as rallies against police brutality continued in defiance of a 24-hour government-imposed curfew. early in the day

Graphic scenes posted on social media showed protesters fleeing as security forces, including soldiers, fired live ammunition at crowds

At least seven people were killed according to DJ Switch, a popular disc jockey, who broadcast live from the scene on Instagram Protesters were seen struggling to remove shrapnel from injured protesters and, in one case, do not resuscitate an injured

In other videos, protesters carrying bloody Nigerian flags are seen pleading with security officials to allow medics to treat victims

« They started firing ammunition towards the crowd They were shooting at the crowd, » Alfred Ononugbo, 55, a security guard told Reuters. « I saw the bullet hit one or two people »

Lagos state government has said it will open an investigation into the shooting, which witnesses say took place around 7 p.m.

Fears of an increase in unrest escalated after the imposition of a curfew by Lagos governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu earlier today in an attempt to end protests against the famous special anti-theft police unit (Sars) which broke out across Nigeria

Thousands of people have taken to the streets in recent weeks against the federal Sars unit, now dissolved but long accused of extrajudicial killings, torture and extortion

More broadly, the protests denounced the systemic abuses of the Nigerian police force, but they in turn faced violence

Last week, the Nigerian military warned it was ready to intervene against « subversive elements and troublemakers », as police repeatedly fired at protesters across Nigeria Armed gangs attacked protesters in Lagos and the capital Abuja

The protests had « degenerated into a monster threatening the well-being of our society, » Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the governor of Lagos, said in a statement on Tuesday after a police station burned down in the neighborhood. from Iganmu to Lagos on Tuesday morning.The national police chief also ordered the immediate deployment of riot forces following the increase in attacks on police facilities, a police spokesperson said

« Criminals and disbelievers are now hiding under the aegis of these protests to unleash chaos on our state, » he said, promising that the government « would not watch and allow anarchy « 

Groups of armed people, often poor young men, are widely suspected of being paid by powerful interests in Nigeria Rights groups and protesters have accused « sponsored thugs and thugs » of attacked peaceful protests and seek to discredit the movement

Five Nigerian states and the capital Abuja have banned protests or enacted curfews, effectively banning protests Yesterday, several protesters targeted Lagos Airport, blocking entrances to its international and domestic terminals, resulting in flight delays

Outrage over police abuse reached a tipping point after images posted online in early October showed Sars officers dragging a man from a hotel in Lagos before shooting him above in the street

Thousands of young people, mostly young people, demonstrated, many for the first time, demanding immediate police reforms Protest groups raised over £ 200,000, set up helplines for police demonstrators in difficulty, covering medical aid and ensuring private security

In response to widespread protests, which are not common in Nigeria, the government disbanded the unit and adopted numerous measures, including court commissions to investigate Sars abuse and compensation for victims

Yet protests have escalated, amid criticism that promises do not go far enough, following several previous promises to reform or revise unity

Many are furious that Sars officers have not been arrested despite a deluge of video evidence showing abuse, including, in recent weeks, during protests The government in Lagos has however said it will investigate all the reported abuses and that four officers arrested for killing a man in Surulere while shooting at protesters were now on trial

The announcement of the new police unit, the Special Weapons and Tactics Team (Swat), to partly replace Sars, also provoked anger

In recent days, people wielding machetes, knives and clubs have attacked demonstrators, leaving many injured, according to Amnesty International

At least 15 people have died since protests began two weeks ago, Amnesty said, condemning widespread violence by police forces against peaceful protests

« In recent days we have documented an escalation of violence and coordinated attacks against peaceful #EndSars protesters, » Amnesty International Nigeria said in a statement yesterday, adding that police used « excessive force », causing many victims

Images posted online show dozens of young men with machetes, knives and sticks arriving at the scene of a sit-in protest outside the Lagos State Government Secretariat last Thursday, then attacking fleeing protesters

Witnesses accused security forces of standing idly by Lagos government condemned violence and ordered investigation

In Benin City, southern Edo state, nearly 2,000 inmates escaped from two prisons after mob attack Images on social media showed several prisoners fleeing and climbing above the prison walls, joining groups of men in the city vandalizing property

Edo Governor Godwin Obaseki has ordered a 24-hour curfew, accusing the vandalism of « thugs under cover of #EndSARS protesters »

In Obalende, a bustling market area of ​​Lagos, people erected roadblocks with tires and stones and extorted money from drivers, as protests unfolded nearby, reflecting similar reports making state of unrest in the city

The government announced the scrapping of the Sars unit and a series of reforms over a week ago in an attempt to appease protesters But many young protesters are skeptical of the government’s promises without clearly specified deadlines and fear that Sars officers will be adopted into the police force without any responsibility

End SARS, Nigeria, Protests, Lagos, Curfew