Nigeria court orders separatist Kanu to face trial, rejects bid to dismiss charges

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By Camillus Eboh

ABUJA (Reuters) -A Nigerian court on Friday rejected a bid by separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu to be freed, ruling that prosecutors had presented enough evidence for him to answer terrorism and treason charges.

Kanu, a British citizen and leader of the banned Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), was first arrested in Nigeria in 2015, skipped bail in 2017, and was rearrested in Kenya in 2021 before being charged with seven counts of terrorism in Nigeria. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges, which carry life sentences.

Judge James Omotosho dismissed Kanu’s “no-case submission”, saying the Department of State Services (DSS), which is prosecuting on behalf of the government, had established a case against him.

“It would be in the best interests of Kanu to be given the opportunity to clear some issues raised against him in the terrorism charges,” Omotosho said.

Kanu, leader of IPOB, has been in DSS custody since his extradition in 2021.

The court also ordered Nigeria’s medical association to set up an eight-member panel to assess Kanu’s health and advise on his request to be moved from DSS detention to the state-run National Hospital. His lawyer cited a report recommending urgent transfer and possible treatment abroad.

But Prosecutor Adegboyega Awomolo opposed the move, citing security risks and insisting DSS had complied with all court orders on Kanu’s welfare.

The case was adjourned to October 8 for the medical panel’s report.

(Reporting by Camillus Eboh; writing by Elisha Bala-GbogboEditing by Gareth Jones)