It Is Mischief To Link Us With Terrorism – Islamic Movement

The Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) has described as mischief attempts by the federal government of Nigeria to link the group to terrorism.

The Nigeria Police on Wednesday in a statement by Mr. Jimoh Moshood, police spokesman, said 400 members of the sect arrested by the police in Abuja would be charged to court for terrorism.

But in a reaction by Ibrahim Musa, president Media Forum of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, dismissed any attempt to link them with terrorism.

“We hereby categorically dismiss any attempt to link the Islamic Movement in Nigeria to acts of terrorism. It is pertinent to note that the philosophy and ideology of Shia abhors bloodshed. This justifies why there is no single Shia group that is in any way linked to terrorism across the world and we are not an exception. Terrorism is not in our character and will never be,” Musa said in a statement on Thursday in Abuja.

According to him, “It has come to our notice that Nigerian security apparatus has commissioned its men and paid agents to massively infiltrate the Arbaeen procession scheduled to hold in Abuja in the coming days to induce violence with the view to smearing the movement in the eyes of the world once and for all.

“The Islamic Movement in Nigeria hereby dissociates itself from the deliberate mischief and narration of impounding petrol bombs and burning police vehicle. This is the plot of the security agents and those instructing them from behind the scene in order to blackmail the movement.

“We wish to remind the Nigeria Police that we as Nigerians have the constitutional right to practice our religion or belief, assemble, express ourselves and protest as enshrined in Article 38 of The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on Freedom of Religion and cannot therefore be denied with the scare of mischievously placing the movement on RED ALERT.

“We hereby call on the general public not to be deceived by the false allegations and executive lies being spread with the intention of blackmailing the peaceful movement and depicting it as violent even without any traces of violence in its almost 40 years of existence.”