Sheikh Zakzaky Poisoned in Prison

Top Nigerian Muslim cleric Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky, who has been held in detention since December 2015 by the Nigerian government, has been poisoned in prison, according to high-level of toxicity was found in his blood.

The leader of Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), who has been held in detention since December 2015 following a deadly raid by the Nigerian army troops on his residence in the country’s northern Kaduna State is unwell, according to the announcement of his medical team.

Members of Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) announced that their cleric was poisoned, citing results of an investigation by the movement’s Academic Forum.

“Lead and cadmium levels are high in his blood which is fatal,” the doctors say, “his liver is also damaged.”

Some say that the elements found in his blood may be due to the poisoned food he has consumed while some believe that lead and cadmium are in his blood since lead shrapnel has been in his body from the time he was in prison and the Nigerian government did not allow any medical treatments for their removal, almanar told.

Zakzaky’s legal team has long called for his release, saying he is suffering from health issues that require urgent medical care abroad, but the state high court in Kaduna has denied the request.

A team of medics examining Zakzaky in prison have renewed pleas for him to be released, saying levels of the chemical toxic substance — lead — is so dangerously high in his blood that requires an immediate medical treatment.

A medical team sent by International Healthcare Research Center (IHRC) to Nigeria in April said that the imprisoned cleric was in urgent need of medical care that could only be fully accessed outside Nigeria.

Sheikh Zakzaky, who is in his mid-sixties, lost his left eyesight in a 2015 raid by security forces, that left more than 300 of his followers and three of his sons dead. His wife also sustained serious wounds.

He has been kept in custody along with his wife and a large number of his followers ever since.

Back in 2016, Nigeria’s federal high court ordered his unconditional release from jail following a trial, but the government has so far refused to set him free.