Nigeria’s president orders the release of 29 children facing death penalty over protests

By Dyepkazah Shibayan

Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu on Monday ordered the immediate release of 29 children facing the death penalty after being arraigned for allegedly participating in protests against the country’s worst cost-of-living crisis in a generation.

Under growing pressure from activists, Tinubu also directed an investigation of the law enforcement agents involved in the arrest and prosecution of the minors, Nigeria’s Information Minister Mohammed Idris told reporters in the capital, Abuja. They are not expected to be released until Tuesday through a court order.

The children, detained since August, were among more than 70 people arraigned on Friday on charges of treason, destruction of property and mutiny after the August protests that shook the country and culminated in security operatives killing some demonstrators and arresting hundreds.

Aged 14 to 17, four of the minors collapsed due to exhaustion when they were brought to the court last week. Most others looked malnourished and lost as they pressed