There was a heavy gun fire in the popular Barnex Plaza area of Wuse, Abuja on Friday as soldiers dispersed protesting members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria.
There are unconfirmed reports that an unspecified number of IMN members were killed in the unrest.
However, the Network has it on good authority that a soldier list his life to the violence.
The troops who promptly moved the body of the fallen soldier arrested two members of the IMN on the spot.
A business operator who spoke on the condition of anonymity said that the crisis started immediately after the Jumait prayers on Friday afternoon.
The source said that shopowners who resumed for duty at the busy Barnex plaza were shocked to see large number of solders in the area.
According to her, some soldiers milled around the mosque while others were within the vicinity of Barnex plaza overlooking the mosque.
The source added that the soldiers obviously had intelligence about a planned protest by the IMN in the area.
The source said, “There was a serious gun fire in Barnex today by soldiers soldiers settled.
“After the mosque prayers, the IMN started shouting to commence a protest.
“Obviously, the soldiers must have had information that there would be a protest. This is because the soldiers were around Barnex and around the mosque in the morning when we resumed for business here.
“The soldiers killed some of them while a soldier was killed.” The source said
Earlier, the US embassy had issued an advisory in which it alerted that a planned demonstration by the IMN could lead to public disorder.
The embassy listed Banex Plaza, Berger Junction, Unity Fountain, the National Human Rights Commission Head Office, Eagle Square, Area 10 Shopping Plaza, the National Mosque, Al-Noor Mosque, and Fouad Lababidi Mosque as possible locations of unrest.
“The Islamic Movement of Nigeria has called for demonstrations in Abuja and other major cities on Friday, March 28, 2025. Heavy traffic and other disruptions are possible. Based on past occurrences, protests may involve roadblocks, checkpoints, traffic congestion, and physical confrontations,” the embassy had stated.
