Soldiers opened fire at Nigerians protesting against police brutality in Lagos on Tuesday, shooting at least two people, according to eyewitnesses.
"They started firing ammunition toward the crowd. They were firing into the crowd,” Alfred Ononugbo, a 55-year-old security officer, said. “I saw the bullets hit one or two persons."
“Happening right now in Lekki.. THERE WAS A COUNTRY,” Famuyiwa Gabriel, Nigerian resident, wrote on Twitter. “Let it be remembered, 20/10/2020, we stood up against oppression in a DEMOCRATIC nation but all we got was GENOCIDE. We shall OVERCOME.”
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The condition of the two people was not clear. "at least 15 people have been killed since the start of the protests," Amnesty International said.
“This is the toughest night of our lives as forces beyond our direct control have moved to make dark notes in our history,” the current Governor of Lagos State Babajide Sanwo-Olu wrote on Twitter.
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Lagos state government said it would open an investigation into the shooting, which witnesses said occurred around 7 pm (1800 GMT).
Demonstrators have taken part in daily protests across the country for nearly two weeks over widespread claims of kidnapping, harassment, and extortion by a police unit known as the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS).
On Tuesday, the state governor imposed a 24-hour curfew in Lagos and deployed anti-riot police to the city
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