Nigeria

A man stands atop the wreckage of the Katako market in Jos, which lies adjacent to the divisional police headquarters.

© 2008 Human Rights Watch

Nigeria: Investigate Killings by Security Forces
The Plateau State Judicial Commission of Inquiry in Nigeria should investigate and call for the prosecution of members of the security forces responsible for the alleged killing of more than 130 people in November 2008.

AU: African Civil Society Presses States for ICC Support

Nov 2, 2009
US: Clinton Should Stress Human Rights on Africa Trip

Jul 31, 2009
Nigeria: Investigate Killings by Security Forces

Jul 20, 2009
Ghana: Obama Visit Should Highlight Rights

Jul 8, 2009

From July 26-31, 2009, deadly clashes in northern Nigeria between Nigerian security forces and an Islamist group known as Boko Haram (meaning, roughly, "Western education is prohibited") or the "Nigerian Taliban" resulted in more than 800 deaths. Boko Haram carried out attacks in Maiduguri, capital of Borno State, and at least three other northern states, mainly against police stations and other government buildings. Nigerian authorities reported that while a number of police officers and soldiers were killed, most of those killed during these clashes were members of Boko Haram. On July 30, Nigerian police and military personnel in Maiduguri took into custody the group's leader, Mohammed Yusuf. Soon thereafter, police reported that Yusuf was killed by the police while in their custody; they later claimed he was shot while "trying to escape." According to credible media sources, Yusuf's body was seen at state police headquarters with multiple bullet wounds.

Human Rights Watch believes there is strong evidence that Yusuf was extrajudicially executed by the police in Maiduguri. The following day, according to media reports, Buji Fai, a former state government official suspected of funding Boko Haram, and Yusuf's father-in-law, Baba Mohammed, were also killed in police custody. On August 4, Nigeria's president, Umaru Yar'Adua, called for a probe into these and other killings in police custody. Nigerian security forces have previously been implicated in unlawful killings, including extrajudicial executions of persons in police custody. In November 2008, security forces were responsible for more than 130 unlawful killings in the city of Jos following election-related violence.

Reports

Arbitrary Killings by Security Forces

Submission to the Investigative Bodies on the November 28-29, 2008 Violence in Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria
Politics as War

The Human Rights Impact and Causes of Post-Election Violence in Rivers State, Nigeria
Criminal Politics

Violence, “Godfathers” and Corruption in Nigeria

AU: African Civil Society Presses States for ICC Support

Nov 2, 2009

A network of African civil society and international organizations today called upon African Union states to use the AU’s upcoming session about the International Criminal Court to promote the court’s ability to prosecute the world’s worst crimes fairly and effectively.
Statement to US Congressional International Religious Freedom Caucus on Prospects for Justice in Northern and Central Nigeria

Sep 24, 2009

Human Rights Watch's Nigeria Researcher Eric Guttschuss delivers a statement to the US Congressional International Religious Freedom Caucus during its hearing, "Prospects for Justice in Northern and Central Nigeria: Government Responses to Religious Extremism and Root Causes."
US: Clinton Should Stress Human Rights on Africa Trip

Jul 31, 2009

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton should emphasize human rights on her seven-nation trip to Africa.
Letter to US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Advance of Her Africa Trip

Jul 30, 2009

Human Rights Watch writes to Secretary of State Clinton in advance of her seven-nation tour of Africa to urge her to emphasize good governance, respect for human rights, and the rule of law.
African Civil Society Urges African States Parties to the Rome Statute to Reaffirm Their Commitment to the ICC

Jul 30, 2009

Recognizing our obligation to help protect human rights and uphold the rule of law, we, the undersigned civil society organizations, appeal to African ICC States Parties to reaffirm their support for the ICC and their commitment to abide by their obligations under the Rome Statute, particularly in relation to the arrest and transfer of the President of Sudan to the ICC.
Nigeria: Investigate Killings by Security Forces

Jul 20, 2009

The Plateau State Judicial Commission of Inquiry in Nigeria should investigate and call for the prosecution of members of the security forces responsible for the alleged killing of more than 130 people in November 2008.
Ghana: Obama Visit Should Highlight Rights

Jul 8, 2009

United States President Barack Obama should use his visit to Ghana on July 10 and 11, 2009 to encourage its new president, John Atta Mills, to take a leadership position in Africa on issues of democracy and justice.
Nigeria: Abusers Reign at Midterm

Jun 7, 2009

President Umaru Yar’Adua of Nigeria, halfway through his presidential mandate, has undermined the country’s foremost anti-corruption body, done little to rein in an abusive police force, and failed to address the root causes of the escalating crisis in the Niger Delta.
Letter to Nigerian President Yar'Adua Marking His Two Years in Office

Jun 5, 2009

Human Rights Watch writes to Nigerian President Umaru Yar'Adua at the midway point of his term in office to express concern about the slow rate of progress, and indeed significant setbacks, in addressing crucial human rights problems in Nigeria under his administration.
Ten Steps the Yar’Adua Administration Can Immediately Take to Improve Nigeria’s Poor Human Rights Record

Jun 5, 2009

The Yar'Adua administration can and must do much more both to tackle the impunity that allows Nigeria's serious human rights problems to persist, and to address their root causes. In this 10-point agenda, Human Rights Watch outlines recommendations that the Yar'Adua administration should implement without delay.

Violence Between Security Forces and Islamist Group in Northern Nigeria

Reports

Nigeria