Demand Immediate Medical Transfer for Nnamdi Kanu and Sanctions on Nigeria for Human Rights Abuses

On September 15, 2025, a Federal High Court in Abuja, under Justice Musa Liman, dismissed an urgent plea to transfer Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), from DSS custody to the National Hospital. Kanu, detained since his illegal rendition from Kenya in 2021, faces life-threatening health issues: failing kidneys, low potassium risking cardiac arrest, a suspicious lump, and untreated pancreatic and liver issues, as confirmed by doctors led by Emeritus Professor Austin A.C. Agaji. Despite an ex parte motion (FHC/ABJ/CR/383/2015) filed on September 3, 2025, citing urgency, the court reassigned the case, citing a post-vacation backlog and Section 46(8) of Federal High Court Rules. The DSS opposed the transfer with a 37-paragraph counter-affidavit, ignoring medical evidence. This follows a pattern: the ECOWAS Court ruled Kanu’s rendition illegal in 2023, the Court of Appeal discharged him in 2022 (overturned by the Supreme Court in 2023), and Amnesty International’s 2024 report labels Nigeria’s detention centers as “torture factories.” Kanu, a non-violent advocate for Biafran self-determination, is denied basic rights—light, air, and medical care—despite no evidence of terrorism, as DSS witnesses admitted in court.Why you're concerned:
This is not just a delay; it’s a calculated death sentence cloaked in legal excuses. Kanu’s deteriorating health—untreated organ failure and potential malignancy—violates UN Standard Minimum Rules for Prisoners (Rule 24), which Nigeria signed. His case exposes systemic cruelty: post-1967 Biafran genocide, Igbo marginalization persists—70% of federal appointments favor the north (SERAP 2024), and 500+ extrajudicial killings plague Igbo land (Amnesty 2024). If Kanu, a global symbol with rallies from London to New York, can be silenced through neglect, what hope exists for ordinary Biafrans labeled “unknown gunmen”? This risks radicalization, refugee crises, and oil price spikes impacting global markets. Nigeria’s defiance of ECOWAS and UN charters threatens Africa’s democratic integrity, emboldening authoritarianism. The DSS’s stonewalling and judicial stalling are hybrid warfare—legal, medical, and media manipulation—to crush a movement for self-determination, a right enshrined in the UN Charter (Article 1) and African Charter (Article 20).What you want to happen now: Immediate Medical Transfer: We demand the DSS transfer Nnamdi Kanu to the National Hospital for urgent treatment, as requested by his doctors, to address his life-threatening conditions.
UN Investigation: We urge the UN Human Rights Council (@UNHumanRights
) to appoint a special rapporteur to probe Kanu’s detention and Nigeria’s human rights abuses, per ECOWAS 2023 rulings.
International Sanctions: We call on the US State Department, UK FCDO, and EU to impose Magnitsky Act-style sanctions on DSS officials and Nigerian authorities enabling this torture, as done for Navalny’s case in Russia.
Release Nnamdi Kanu: Nigeria must honor the 2022 Court of Appeal ruling and ECOWAS 2023 decision to free Kanu, ending his illegal detention.
Global Awareness: We ask supporters to share #SaveNnamdiKanu and #KanuHealthCrisis on social media, tag @antonioguterres
and @FCDOGovUK
, and sign this petition to amplify Biafra’s cry for justice.

Kanu’s fight is Africa’s litmus test. His pulse weakens, but Biafra’s beats stronger. Sign now to save a life and demand corrective justice for a people denied their rights since 1967. Let’s make this trend globally—silence is surrender!