The family of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of proscribed group, Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has been granted an order by the UK court to challenge the British government for their non-intervention in his ongoing alleged treason and terrorism case against the Nigerian Federal government.
Nnamdi Kanu, a British-Nigerian citizen was apprehended in Kenya in June 2021 before being taken to Nigeria, where he has been held in detention by the Department of DSS since.
According to Kanu’s family, he was tortured in Kenya before being renditioned to Nigeria by Muhammadu Buhari’s regime.
The UN working group on arbitrary detention issued a statement in July stating that Kanu had been subjected to extraordinary rendition and that he should be released immediately.
However, two past UK foreign secretaries, Dominic Raab and then Liz Truss, refused to comment on whether Kanu was a victim of extraordinary rendition.
The Kanu family has now been granted a court review to appeal the refusal by the UK government, claiming that it has resulted in no action being taken to assist him.
“The British government is well known for its stance on human rights. I believe it must be decisive when it comes to its decision-making about very serious violations of the human rights of British citizens abroad, especially when the facts are clear, as they are in my brother’s case, and when the UN has investigated and reached a firm conclusion that my brother was subject to extraordinary rendition. I am very happy that the court has agreed that a hearing is necessary to decide this important issue,” Nnamdi Kanu’s brother, Kingsley Kanu said, according to the Guardian UK.
Also, Kanu’s lawyer, Aloy Ejiamakor, published a letter on his social media accounts on Friday, September 30, showing that the UK Court has granted his client’s family permission to go ahead with the case.
