Nigerian court sentences separatist Nnamdi Kanu to life in prison on terrorism charges

Separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu attends a court hearing at the Federal High court in Abuja, Nigeria, on Jan. 29, 2016. (AP Photo)

ABUJA, NIGERIA -- A court in Nigeria on Thursday convicted separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu of all seven terrorism-related charges brought against him and sentenced him to life imprisonment.

Kanu founded the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), which has been accused of terrorism and extra-judicial killings in the country’s southeastern region where it has called for the creation of an independent state.

The charges against Kanu, who has rejected the court’s authority, included carrying out acts of terrorism, issuing and violently enforcing stay-at-home orders that bring the southeastern region to a halt every Monday, giving guidance on how to make bombs to be used on government facilities, and incitement.

Judge James Omotosho told the court that the “right to self-determination is a political right,” but he added that: “Any self-determination not done according to the constitution of Nigeria is illegal.”

Prosecutors had sought the death penalty against Kanu, but Omotosho said he chose to show mercy.

“I must temper justice with mercy. The court will follow the admonition of Jesus Christ in the above passage and show mercy to the convict. In addition, the death penalty globally is being frowned upon by the international community,” the judge ruled

Kanu had sought to revive the short-lived Biafra, a seceded region of Nigeria between 1967 and 1970, which sparked the Nigerian Civil War during that period. At least 3 million people were killed before the Biafran troops surrendered.

Kanu was arrested in 2021 and brought back from Kenya after initially failing to appear in court in 2015.

Last month, Kanu dismissed his entire legal team and returned to an earlier objection to the court proceedings. He refused to defend himself against the charges.

“The court lacks jurisdiction to try me. My charge sheet does not contain any written law in Nigeria,” Kanu told the court before his conviction.

A Lagos-based geopolitical consultancy, SBM Intelligence, earlier this year reported that the violent enforcement of the stay-at-home orders had resulted in at least 700 deaths and cost the country 7.6 trillion naira (US$5.3 billion).

Another Nigerian separatist leader, Simon Ekpa, was convicted in Finland in September for charges including terrorism. Ekpa, who was also a Finnish citizen, was sentenced to six years in prison for participating in the activities of a terrorist group, public incitement to commit a crime for terrorist purposes and aggravated tax fraud.

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By Dyepkazah Shibayan And Ope Adetayo

Adetayo reported from Dakar, Senegal