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| Nigeria court in Kano sentences nine people to death for blasphemy | Nigeria court in Kano sentences nine people to death for blasphemy |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| An Islamic court has sentenced nine people to death for insulting the Prophet Mohammad in the northern Nigerian city of Kano. | An Islamic court has sentenced nine people to death for insulting the Prophet Mohammad in the northern Nigerian city of Kano. |
| The accused, who were all Muslims, had pleaded guilty, the head of Kano's religious police, Aminu Ibrahim Daurawa, told the BBC. | |
| The trial was speedily done in secret after a section of the court was burnt down by angry protesters last month. | |
| It is not known if they will appeal against the sentence. | It is not known if they will appeal against the sentence. |
| The alleged offence was committed last month at a religious gathering in honour of Sheikh Ibrahim Niasse, the Senegalese founder of the Tijaniya sect which has a large following across West Africa. | |
| "There has been consensus among Muslims scholars that insulting the prophet carries a death sentence," Mr Daurawa told the BBC Hausa service. | |
| "We quickly put them on trial to avoid bloodshed because people were very angry and trying to take law into their hands," he added. | |
| Kano has a predominately Muslim population and Islamic courts operate alongside secular courts. | Kano has a predominately Muslim population and Islamic courts operate alongside secular courts. |
| There was jubilation in some parts of the city as news of the judgement trickled in. | |
| Several states in predominantly Muslims northern Nigeria have introduced Sharia law after the country returned to civilian rule in 1999. | |
| BBC Nigeria analyst Naziru Mikailu says this is the first time a death sentence has been handed down for blasphemy in northern Nigeria. | |
| The sentence has been delivered for other offences such as adultery but none has been carried out. |