IPOB Lauds Kenyan Court Ruling Declaring Nnamdi Kanu’s Rendition Unlawful

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) have applauded a historic decision by the Kenyan High Court that ruled that the June 2021 kidnapping and forcible removal of its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, from Kenya to Nigeria was unlawful and unconstitutional.

In a judgement delivered on June 24, 2025, Justice E.C. Mwita found both the Kenyan and Nigerian governments guilty of violating Kanu’s fundamental rights and awarded him KSh10 million in compensation for the abuses he suffered.

Justice Mwita stated, “The government of Kenya violated the Constitution and Mr. Nnamdi Kanu’s rights and fundamental freedoms. Having entered Kenya lawfully, he was entitled to the protection afforded under the Constitution of Kenya 2010. However, he was abducted, kept in solitary confinement, tortured, and forcibly removed from Kenya without due process.”

The court found that Kanu’s incommunicado detention, as well as the denial of food, water, and medical treatment, constituted grave breaches of his constitutional rights. It further ruled that his forced transfer to Nigeria contravened both Kenyan domestic law and international legal standards.

Reacting to the ruling, IPOB issued a statement on Friday through its spokesperson, Emma Powerful, describing the judgement as a “resounding judicial earthquake” that vindicates the group’s position that Kanu’s transfer was an illegal act of state aggression.

IPOB accused both the Nigerian and Kenyan governments of orchestrating what it called a “criminal act of state-sponsored international terrorism” and pledged to pursue accountability on a global scale.

According to IPOB, Kanu was not extradited but subjected to an “extraordinary rendition” — an unlawful transfer involving covert collaboration between the security agencies of both countries.

“He was abducted in broad daylight at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, chained, tortured, and flown illegally to Abuja without any extradition hearing or judicial warrant,” the group said in its statement.

IPOB also expressed deep appreciation to Professor PLO Lumumba, who led Kanu’s legal team in Kenya, and to Justice Mwita for what it described as their “courage, clarity, and tenacity” in upholding the rule of law.

“This verdict places a permanent legal stain on the records of former presidents Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya and Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria, as well as their collaborators,” the group added.

IPOB warned that the ruling marks the beginning of a global accountability campaign targeting all those involved in Kanu’s rendition.

“All those responsible, whether in Kenya, Nigeria, or elsewhere, shall be pursued to the ends of the earth under the universal principle of accountability for crimes against humanity,” it concluded.