The Islamic police in Nigeria’s northwestern state of Kano, alias Hisbah, arrested 11 Muslims on Tuesday who were seen eating in public despite the ongoing Ramadan fast.
Kano, with its majority Muslim population, operates under Sharia law alongside the country’s secular legislation. Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset during Ramadan, which began on March 11, to end on April 9.
Hisbah spokesperson Lawal Fagge reported the arrests on Wednesday. He said 10 men were arrested near busy markets while a female peanut seller was caught eating from her wares.
The arrests followed tips from onlookers. Hisbah carries out raids on eateries and markets every year during Ramadan to enforce compliance with the fast. Non-Muslims are exempted from such arrests but can be arrested when they cook and sell to Muslims.
The detainees were freed after they promised to not miss any fasts in the future, at least intentionally. “For some of them,” Fagge said, “we had to involve their relatives or guardians to have their family monitor them.”
—Ezinwanne Onwuka reports for TruthNigeria from Abuja.
