Two passersby on Thursday in Kaduna State lost their lives when security operatives dispersed members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), otherwise known as Shiites, during a protest condemning the ongoing war in Palestine.

The protesters,gathered, were marching towards the office of the National Human Rights Commission to submit a letter in support of the people of Gaza in Palestine, but met stiff resistance from security agents, resulting in the death of a commercial motorcycle operator (okada man) and another person.

A source revealed that shortly after the Shiites began the procession, police operatives fired tear gas and shot sporadically to disperse the protesters. He further explained that a stray bullet killed the Okada man, but his passenger was lucky and survived.

He added that about 200 meters along the Sokoto road near the Chicken Market, Kaduna, a stray bullet also hit another passer-by who was not even a Shiite member and died.

A Shiite leader, Aliyu Umar Tirmidhi, explained that they were on a peaceful procession to protest against the killing of innocent Palestinians in Gaza.

According to him, “The Israeli occupiers have, for the past 75 years, been unleashing genocide, ethnic cleansing, and apartheid on unarmed civilians, including men, women, and children.”

The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), ASP Mansir Hassan, while reacting to the development, blamed the protesters for the crisis.

He alleged that only one person was killed by the protesters (Shiites), saying, “Our men were on the street to ensure that there was no breakdown of the law.”

He also exonerated the police for the killings, stating that their men were not responsible but the Shiites.