El- Zakzaky alleges plan to use fake ‘Shi’ites’ to kill soldiers in Zaria

From Femi Oyelola, Kaduna

The leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, Sheikh Ibraheem El Zakzaky, has   said there is a sinister plan to cause violence in the city of Zaria and attribute such to his movement.

He disclosed this at the weekly lecture Husainayya, in Zaria, yesterday.

El- Zakzaky said he arrived at the Center earlier than his usual time because he was acting on a tip-off, over a sinister plan by the Nigerian military to infiltrate the movement and kill unsuspecting soldiers, which according to him, will justify official clampdown on members.

The plan, according to him, was that some armed soldiers would wear Hurras (Guards) traffic control volunteers’ uniforms, and would open fire on unsuspecting soldiers passing by. “While this is happening, they would have their camera ready, filming it and later blame it on ‘Shi’ites’. They would then begin manhunt and indiscriminate shooting of people”, he stated.

“The unsuspecting soldiers (the target), in four vehicles comprising 60 soldiers in each, 2 Hilux vans, Jeep and an ambulance had actually arrived Leventis roundabout, scene of the planned shooting, disembarked with sign of hostility, but a sudden heavy downpour foiled their plan. They had to walk away disappointed as the situation was becoming uncontrollable”.

Sheikh Zakzaky said, the Hurras traffic control volunteers were earlier asked to withdraw and he also changed route, which left only the disguised soldiers visibly identified at the scene, and therefore had to quickly leave in disappointment.

He explained that the security operatives had been contemplating covert operation on the Islamic movement, until late July this year, when they became anxious and opened fire on Quds Day procession, which they later regretted.

“Having failed and shamefully exposed before the world in the last onslaught, they now resorted to their initial plan of infiltration or using some members of the movement as agents to shoot at soldiers and attribute it to ‘Shi’ites’”, he added.

The Islamic Leader said all machinations of the enemy will fail in the face of growing peaceful conduct and public respect of the Islamic movement over years.

“Our weapon is positive reasoning, truth and good conduct. Guns are for the reckless and foolhardy. We have been conducting our affairs peacefully, calling people to the truth for the last 36 years. So you cannot come overnight and attribute violence to us that we now resort to killing people. This is impossible; We save lives, not kill them”.

He called on people to use their sense of judgment in the face campaign of calumny being hatched by the Nigerian security operatives against the Islamic movement. “If in the nearby future you hear of any exchange of fire between the ‘Shi’ites’ and security operatives, it is not true.

Efforts to get the reaction of the Army’s Public Relation’s Officer (PRO), Col.  Abdul Usman, did not yield any positive result as he did not respond to calls of text messages sent to his phone.