Ayatollah Sheikh Ibraheem Zakzaky | |
|---|---|
 Ibraheem Zakzaky in 2013 | |
| Born | 5 May 1953 |
| Nationality | Nigerian |
| Other names | Sharfuddeen |
| Education | Economics |
| Alma mater | Ahmadu Bello University |
| Years active | 1979–present |
| Known for | Founder of Islamic Movement in Nigeria |
| Spouse | Zeenatuddeen Ibraheem |
| Children | |
| Relatives | Sayyid Badamasi Yaqoub |
Ibraheem Yaqoub El-Zakzaky (alternately Ibraheem Zakzaky, Ibrahim Al-Zakzaky; born 5 May 1953) is a Nigerian religious leader. An outspoken and prominent Shi'a leader in Nigeria, he has been imprisoned several times for what he sees as injustice, especially the system of corruption in his country. Zakzaky claims that only Islam can offer solution to the complex socio-political problems facing Nigeria, which has over the years stagnated the country's development.[3][4] In a lecture he has delivered in marking the occasion of Sheikh Uthman Bn Fodio Week (May 2023) organized by the Academic Forum of Islamic Movement, Zakzaky stated that he is continuing the Jihad of Uthman Bn Fodio to make sure that Islam becomes the ruling religion in not only Nigeria but the entirety of West Africa. In a lecture he delivered on the same occasion in Sokoko (20 May 2023), one of his proponents, Dr. Nasir Hashim has claimed that Zakzaky’s dream is the only hope for Africa.
Sheikh Zakzaky is the head of Nigeria's Islamic Movement, which he started in the late 1970s, when he was a student at Ahmadu Bello University, and began propagating Shia Islam around 1979, at the time of the Iranian revolution—which saw Iran's monarchy overthrown and replaced with an Islamic republic under Ayatollah Khomeini. Zakzaky believed that the establishment of a republic along similar religious lines in Nigeria would be feasible. He has been detained several times due to accusations of civil disobedience or recalcitrance under military regimes in Nigeria during the 1980s and 1990s, and is still viewed with suspicion or as a threat by Nigerian authorities.[4] In December 2015, the Nigerian Army raided his residence in Zaria, seriously injured him, and killed hundreds of his followers. Since then, he has remained under state detention in the nation's capital pending his release, which was ordered in late 2016.[5][6] In 2019, a court in Kaduna state granted him and his wife bail to seek treatment abroad but they returned from India after 3 days on the premises of unfair treatment and tough restrictions by security operatives deployed to the medical facility.[7]
- ^ a b c "Sheikh Zakzaky's 3 sons, 9 others died in Nigerian troops, Shiite Muslims Clash". Vanguard Newspaper. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
- ^ a b c "Three sons of Zakzaky killed in Nigeria massacre: Rights group". Press TV. Archived from the original on 20 April 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
- ^ Dan Issacs (1 October 2001). "Nigeria's firebrand Muslim leader". BBC News. Archived from the original on 26 January 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2014.
- ^ a b Connor Gaffey (16 December 2015). "Who is Sheikh Zakzaky, Nigeria's Most Powerful Shiite Muslim?". Newsweek Magazine. Archived from the original on 8 September 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- ^ "Family Of Sheikh Zakzaky Unclear If He Is Dead Or Unwell, According To Family Sources". Sahara Reporters. 17 December 2015. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
- ^ "Court orders DSS to release Shiite leader, pay him N50M compensation". Pulse Nigeria. 2 December 2016. Archived from the original on 9 July 2020. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
- ^ "Nigerian Shia leader, wife reject treatment in India, return home". www.aljazeera.com. Archived from the original on 8 September 2021. Retrieved 2 October 2020.