24 Aug 2009

The head of an Islamic group in Nigeria raided by police last week has denied any links to the Boko Haram sect that started a deadly clash with the government in early August.

Police have said the crackdown on the group, which had formed a base by the name Darul Islam, and the subsequent arrest of more than 700 residents were a precautionary measure after the bloodbath in the north.

Although searches revealed no weapon caches, some 500 members, including the group's chief, remain in custody and other residents of the Darul Islam base --nearly 2,000 people-- have been relocated to a school and are under constant watch, the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) reported.

According to IRIB, the detained head of Darul Islam group Bashir Abdullah told his voluntary lawyers that the group has no links to Boko Haram, and only wants to live under Islamic law.

He added that they had chosen the western state of Niger in order to be able to abide by Islamic laws.

State officials, however, maintained their stance on Monday, saying that dozens of its members had been deported to avert any repeat of violence.

Some 50 lawyers have so far volunteered to defend the detainees.

The conflict with Boko Haram, which the Abuja refers to as 'Nigerian Taliban,' spread to four states and left more than 800 people dead in the Muslim-majority north.

Clerics in the region censured the government for delay in dealing with the group, which they said they had warned was growing into a threat.

presstv