The International Centre for Justice (ICJ) has said the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) also called Shiites get sponsorship from Iran.
It also lamented the death of a corps member Precious Owolabi who passed away on Monday
Precious who was a former reporter with Channels TV died from wounds from a stray bullet following a clash between members of Shiites and the police.
In a statement on Tuesday, the ICJ lamented the mode of operation of Shiites members describing it as terrorism.
“The activities of IMN, whether freely of the volition of its members or tele-guided by Iran, is a danger to Africa’s most populous nation and the West-African sub-region, which is already fragile as country governments strive to get rid of terrorist groups operating around the Lake Chad Basin and Northern Mali,” the statement added.
“The region and the world in general does not the need another terror group to add to the list of those that must be hunted down for other citizens to be safe.”
It added that it “is worrisome that IMN has reportedly used the period that this directive subsists to graduate into using dangerous weapons, ammunitions and explosives on public buildings, against security operatives and for destroying the properties of innocent citizens.
“This has effectively moved IMN from the band of an organization protesting for rights restoration to one that can officially be designated a terrorist group, and to the extent that it receives resources from Iran across borders qualifies it as an international terrorist organization.”
According to the statement, “Irrespective of the support IMN is getting as identified, the duty of safeguarding the life and property of citizens falls on government and the authorities in Nigeria cannot abdicate this responsibility on the excuse or pretext of complying with international protocols.
“The life of a law-abiding citizen is no less in value to that of someone that elected to become a terrorist. The government of the Federal Government of Nigeria must therefore do all that is necessary to protect its population, including those working in law enforcement, from IMN attacks.”