UFC Champion Israel Adesanya claims it's time to 'fight' for human rights after sharing video of torture in Nigeria
UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is proud of his Nigerian heritage and even though he lives in Auckland, New Zealand now, the Nigerian-Kiwi mixed martial artist is deeply disturbed at the growing state of unrest in his birthplace of Lagos in Nigeria.
Israel Adesanya took to Twitter to share a disturbing video of a man being tortured in Nigeria, calling for an end to the violation of human rights in the country. In the truly appalling video, a man was tied up and left hanging from the ceiling while he was being brutally tortured by what is assumed to be members of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) founded in late 1992 by former police commissioner Simeon Danladi Midenda.
Warning: The following video is of graphic nature
Israel Adesanya urges his people to fight for human rights
Israel Adesanya pledged his support to the #EndSars campaign against police abuse by the notorious Special Anti-Robbery Squad launched by the Nigerian government. The campaign has drawn support from various celebrities across the globe but the unrest and violence in Laos, the most populous Nigerian city, continues to grow.
As reported by The Guardian, the state security forces opened fire on a group of protestors at the Lekki tollgate in Lagos late on Tuesday. Other tragic instances of police harassment, assault, rape, unlawful arrests, extortion, and murder of citizens in Nigeria have also been circulated widely. The government said it would disband the squad, only to later state that it would create a new unit instead. Some states have started looking into these incidences of police brutality but the offenders are yet to be arrested while the death toll in custody has increased.
The campaign has received humongous support from celebrities worldwide – ranging from Kanye West, Israel Adesanya, Marcus Rashford, Beyonce and others. However, much hasn't been said by political leaders in the African region regarding the matter.
Israel Adesanya recently defended his UFC Middleweight championship against Paulo Costa in dominant fashion at UFC 253.
The fighter has teased a fight against surging contender Jared Cannonier, Light Heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz or Jon Jones in the near future.