Kingsley Kanu, the brother of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, lost a legal case against the British government in a London court over his continued detention in Nigeria.
The younger Kalu brought a judicial review against Britain’s Foreign Office over its alleged rejection to acknowledge that Nnamdi Kanu, who holds Nigerian and British citizenship, was the victim of an extraordinary rendition from Kenya to Nigeria in June 2021.
According to Reuters, Kingsley’s lawyers argued that the Foreign Office should reach a concluded view on whether his brother was the victim of extraordinary rendition in order to properly assess what steps to take to assist Kanu.
The judge in charge of the case, Jonathan Swift dismissed the case in a written ruling on Thursday, in which he said the Foreign Office’s decision not to express a firm view about Kanu’s treatment, either privately or publicly, was a matter for the government.
However, the judge added that the British government’s approach will also now be informed by a ruling given by Nigeria’s Court of Appeal on October 13, which found that Kanu had been unlawfully abducted and rendered to Nigeria.
Nigeria’s Court of Appeal also dropped seven terrorism charges against Kanu, who remains in detention pending an appeal against that decision by the Nigerian government.
Britain’s Foreign Office and Kingsley Kanu’s lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.