ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — At least 13 protesters have been killed during mass protests in Nigeria over the country’s economic crisis that escalated in several states, a human rights group said Friday.
Authorities confirmed that four people were killed by a bomb and hundreds were arrested during the protests that led to curfews in several states.
Isa Sanusi, executive director of Amnesty International Nigeria, said in an interview that it has independently verified the deaths reported by witnesses, victims’ families and lawyers.
More than 300 protesters were arrested and curfews imposed in the northern states of Kano and Katsina after government and public property was looted, Nigerian police said. One police officer was also killed and several others injured.
The protests have focused on food shortages and alleged poor governance in the country. Nigerian civil servants, often accused of corruption, are among the highest paid in Africa, a stark contrast in a country that has some of the world’s poorest and hungriest people despite being one of the continent’s largest oil producers.
Carrying banners, bells and the green and white Nigerian flag, the protesters chanted songs as they listed their demands, including the reinstatement of subsidies on gas and electricity. Their removal is part of the government’s bold reforms to boost the economy and has had a knock-on effect on the price of almost everything.
