There Are No Legal Restrictions on the Treatment of Sheikh Zakzaky and His Wife Abroad

According to the Islam Times, "Sheikh Ibrahim Yaqub Zakzaky", the leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, and his wife "Zeinat Ibrahim" after almost five and a half years, he was finally released from prison without any formalities on July 28, after the last court hearing, which was in fact a sentencing hearing. Sheikh Zakzaky and his wife, who are in dire need of treatment and several surgeries, have been in Nigeria since that day and no action has been taken to treat them.

In this regard, the "Islam Times" correspondent spoke with "Masoud Shajareh", the head of the Islamic Human Rights Commission in London, to follow up on the situation of the Nigerian Shiite leader by this human rights center.

Q) As a person who is closely acquainted with the medical records and physical condition of Sheikh Zakzaki and his wife, why do you think there are delays in the process of transferring Sheikh out of Nigeria due to their urgent need for treatment?

Masoud replied: "We hear a lot of contradictory things about the sheikh and what will happen after the trial; Of course, I must emphasize that there are one hundred percent powerful people in Nigeria, and they are the sworn enemies of the Sheikh and the Islamic Movement, either because of their own ideological issues. Or because these people are given a certain amount of ransom or facilities to react to the sheikh, whether they are now supported by Saudi Arabia or the Zionist regime, and may even be supported by other parties."

He added: It has been shown that a lot has been said about his current situation. But what seems very clear is that human rights associations, such as the Islamic Human Rights Commission, have made it very clear that so far we have not seen or presented any evidence that the sheikh and his wife, or even the Islamic Movement to have committed a crime, the sheikh himself has repeated all this in the last six years that they should be acquitted legally and through their rights. 

The issue that is very clear now is that he was acquitted after two trials, one by the Supreme Court of Nigeria and the other by the Supreme Court of Kaduna State, there is no evidence that these servants of God have committed any wrongdoing, so the Sheikh and his wife have no restrictions in any way, and their freedom is without any restrictions, meaning that they can do whatever they want as a citizen.

This issue of their innocence has been proven one hundred percent. All the other accusations that are being made are really propaganda propaganda actions that have no principles and bases, but it is a problem right now, and that issue of presenting his passport as a citizen who can leave Nigeria has not been implemented yet, there are no legal restrictions, but in practice we still see restrictions. This is because those who plotted for the sheikh are powerful, and the system there has not yet been able to resolve the issue of providing him with all the documents that the sheikh needs to leave. So the important issue now is that firstly there are no legal restrictions for Sheikh Zakzaky and his wife, secondly it is clear and even the Nigerian court has ruled that the sheikh needs treatment and must leave Nigeria for treatment, because there is no possibility of medical care in Nigeria itself, because the operations that the sheikh and his wife need for treatment are not possible in Nigeria. 

Q) What solutions do human rights institutions such as the London Commission for Islamic Human Rights take or do they have?

He stated: Given that it has been proven without any doubt that these servants of God are innocent and that they have been acquitted of all charges and that they are in dire need of leaving Nigeria for treatment, we must bring the necessary pressure, and we must try as soon as possible to provide the necessary measures and facilities for the Sheikh to go abroad and receive medical facilities to address their concerns and physical problems. 

In the end, he expressed the following opinion: I think that after keeping Sheikh and his wife in the worst conditions and the worst prisons for six years, and given that he has been proven innocent, we must all unite, from governmental associations, non-governmental organizations to politicians, freedom-loving people; And we all have to push for facilities to be provided as soon as possible and for them to move to the desired destination for treatment, and indeed the Nigerian government must take this very important step and take action as soon as possible to prepare the ground for the Sheikh's treatment.