Nigeria police, troops 'abused rioters' in north

AFP

7 Mat 2011

Nigeria police, troops 'abused rioters' in north

KANO, Nigeria — Rights groups on Friday accused Nigerian troops and police of abuses, including extra-judicial killings, as they sought to quell deadly riots in northern Nigeria after the April 16 presidential poll.

Police and military officials could not be reached for comment, but a spokesman for the governor in the hard-hit state of Kaduna denied the allegations.

New York-based Human Rights Watch and Civil Rights Congress, a local rights group based in the city of Kaduna, have separately accused soldiers and police of extra-judicial killings and other abuses.

The abuses are alleged to have occurred in Kaduna and another northern city, Zaria, both of which were severely affected by the riots that Civil Rights Congress says killed more than 500 people.