Amnesty International Condemns Attempted Mob Execution Of Blasphemy Suspect In Katsina

Amnesty International Nigeria has condemned what it described as the rising wave of mob violence and “jungle justice” in northern Nigeria following an incident in Katsina State where a crowd reportedly surrounded a court, demanding the extrajudicial execution of a defendant accused of blasphemy.

The human rights organisation, in a statement issued on Friday, said the incident occurred on Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at the Kofar Soro area of Katsina town.

It described the development as a grave attack on the rule of law and the administration of justice.

According to Amnesty International, a large crowd of children and young men, allegedly armed with various weapons, besieged the court and called for the accused to be executed without undergoing due legal process.

“The standard in Nigeria is the rule of law, not ‘jungle justice’,” the organisation said, warning that every defendant is entitled to a fair trial regardless of the allegations against them.

Amnesty International said the incident echoed the recent killing of Ummulkhairi, a teacher and mother of five, who was allegedly burned to death by a mob in Mararabar Jos, Kaduna State, about 10 days earlier over claims that she attempted to abduct children.

The organisation noted that the Katsina incident highlighted what it described as an increasing disregard for due process and a growing culture of lawlessness in parts of northern Nigeria.

It also expressed concern over reports that the crowd, largely made up of children and young men, was armed with machetes, spears, iron rods, sledgehammers, broken bottles, daggers, bows and arrows, and knives while demanding the defendant’s execution.

The rights group described the involvement of children in the incident as particularly alarming, stressing that they should be in school or learning vocational skills rather than participating in acts of mob violence.

Amnesty International urged the Katsina State Government and relevant law enforcement agencies to carry out a thorough investigation into the incident and ensure that anyone found to have incited or taken part in the attempted mob action is brought to justice.

It maintained that justice must be delivered through lawful judicial procedures and not through violence or any form of extrajudicial punishment.