TheCable

Twenty-one people, including children, were killed on Friday when a suicide bomber attacked members of the Shia sect trekking from Kano to Zaria, for their annual procession.

A source confirmed the attack to TheCable, saying it occurred at Samawa village in Garun Mallam local government area of the state.

Muhammadu Turi, one of the leaders of the sect, said the procession would continue “without any fear”.

Aliyu Kakaki, media officer of the group, said the security team of the Shiite known as Hurras, sighted the bomber when he rushed into the crowd.

He said a suspect found with explosives was arrested, adding that 40 persons, who sustained injuries are receiving treatment.

“One of the bombers was arrested and we are investigating him to know his mission,” he said.

Shia, a minority in the population of Muslims in Nigeria, has most of its members in Kano, Sokoto and Kaduna states.

Ibraheem Zakzaky introduced the group to Nigeria in the 1980s.

Last year, some Shiites were killed during a clash with soldiers. Zakzay, who lost two children in the incident, claimed that the sect lost 35 members to soldiers.

“A total of 35 people were killed and they (soldiers) wounded a lot of people, including children and women,” he had said at a press conference.

“It was during that shooting that one of my sons, Mahmud, a student of Almustapha International University in Beirut, was shot. He came home for holiday at the beginning of this Ramadan. He was shot at his abdomen. He was brought here bleeding, they wanted to take him to the hospital, but the soldiers had blocked the way. He therefore bled to death.”