TEHRAN – Iranian MPs issued a statement on Tuesday condemning the imprudent killing of Muslim Shias in Nigeria.

The statement was signed by 214 MPs in the 290-seat parliament.
The MPs called on the Iranian Foreign Ministry and government to pursue the issue at the international level and present report to the parliament.

Such crimes are committed by the Takfiri-Salafi movement which is supported by the U.S. and the Zionist regime of Israel, the statement said.

It described the recent incidents in Nigeria as acts of “imprudence” in controlling the society.

The MPs urged Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari to form a committee to investigate the issue.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani on Tuesday said Tehran is adopting measures to provide assistance to Nigeria’s Shias.

On Saturday night, Nigerian military forces surrounded the house of Sayyid Ibrahim Zakzaky, the leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, in the northern city of Zaria. Heavy fighting broke out afterwards between the government forces and members of the Islamic Movement, which stretched into the early hours of Sunday.

At least 20 Shia Muslims were killed in the clashes. The Nigerian Army alleges that members of the movement were involved in an attack on the convoy of the Chief of Nigeria’s Army Staff, Tukur Buratai. The Islamic Movement has denied the allegations.

NA/PA