*All of them buried in a mass grave supervised  by  40 soldiers

Shiite members on the day they clashed with the military: many of them killed

For the first time since last December, the Kaduna State Government gave an idea of the number of Shiite people killed by Nigerian soldiers in Zaria between 12 and 13 December , 2015 after an allegation the Shiites were trying to assassinate the Chief of army staff, Lt. General Tukur Buratai.

In a testimony before a panel set up by the state,Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Alhaji Balarabe Lawal said   347 persons were killed during  in Zaria by soldiers. The figure is far fewer than the 1000 claimed by the Islamic Movement of Nigeria.

Lawal, who led a six-man government witnesses before theJudicial Commission of Inquiry, said that 191 corpses were taken from the Nigerian Army Depot, Zaria, and were buried in Mando area in Kaduna.

He said 156 corpses were also conveyed from Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital (ABUTH), Zaria, to the same Mando area.

How it all began: Soldiers talking with the Shiites on Saturday 12 December

The SSG said the corpses were those of youth Members of the Islam Movement (IMN) who allegedly attempted to attack the convoy of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, on Dec. 12, 2015, in Zaria.

The state government said the corpses were committed into a single grave (mass burial) at the Mando area jointly supervised by the state government officials and about 40 men of the Nigerian Army, led by an officer in the rank of a Major.

The SSG said 189 suspects were being prosecuted for alleged involvement in the Zaria crises while one suspect had died in custody.

Lt General Tukur Buratai: chief of army staff: army claimed COAS was to be assassinated

He said the state government had received several security reports from the Directorate of State Security (DSS) on the activities of the movement.

According to him, several measures had been taken to address the situation before it finally escalated into the clash with the Nigerian Army.

Another witness and Director-General, Kaduna State Interfaith Agency, Mr Namadi Musa, said the mass burial was conducted on Dec. 14 and Dec. 15, respectively, and it took the officials about six hours to complete the burial.

Musa said while six tonnes of Mercedes tippers conveyed the 191 corpses from the ABUTH, the Army used three heavy duty trucks to convey corpses from the Zaria Army Depot.

“The mass burial was authorised through a warrant of burial obtained from a Kaduna Chief Magistrates’ Court in Kaduna,’’ he said.

The state government blamed some of the lapses and the excesses of the movement on the inability of the previous government which did not take serious action to curtail the activities of the sect.

The state government blamed some of the lapses and the excesses of the movement on the inability of the previous government which did not take serious action to curtail the activities of the sect.

Lawal in his presentation did not report on the state of the IMN leader, Sheikh Ibraheem El-Zakzaky, said to have been partially rendered blind after being wounded seriously by gun-wielding soldiers.

On alleged demolition of buildings and structures of the IMN leader, the witnesses said that the demolitions were based on recommendation of a committee set up by the state government.

The witnesses, including officials of KASUPDA, KAPWA and the state ministry of Works, Transport and Housing, told the panel that several other structures belonging to individuals had been demolished for poor building specifications and standards.

Mrs Saratu Haruna, General Manager, KASUPDA; Mr Namadi Musa, D-G Interfaith Agency; and Prof. Adamu Ahmed, Deputy CMD ABUTH, appeared before the panel.

The Justice Muhammed Lawal-Garba panel also took submissions from the Izala Islamic group and Gyellesu Community in Zaria.

The Islamic Movement of Nigeria has boycotted Inquiry and instead filed a case at the International Criminal Court, alleging genocide on the part of Nigerian military.