NIGERIA’s police chief on Saturday ordered the mobilization of all police resources to reclaim public space after more than two weeks of peaceful protests over police brutality gave way to widespread vandalism and looting.

The order came four days after the police and soldiers fired on demonstrators, killing 12 and injuring hundreds in an upscale Lagos neighborhood.

The protesters are demanding that the government dismantle and discipline a police unit known as SARS, the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, which for years has been known for detaining, brutalizing and stealing from citizens, particularly young people.

Tuesday’s violent crackdown on protesters, combined with a nighttime curfew imposed in its wake and protest leaders urging people to stay home, have largely cleared peaceful demonstrators from the streets of Lagos.

But following the shootings, which outraged Nigerians, at least 17 police stations were destroyed in Lagos, according to a police spokesman.Widespread looting has also