Nigerian police fire tear gas and detain several protesters - witnesses

[June 12, 2021]    ABUJA/LAGOS (Reuters) - Police fired tear gas and detained several demonstrators in the Nigerian cities of Lagos and Abuja on Saturday during protests over the worsening security situation in Africa's most populous country, Reuters witnesses said.

Protesters run after police fired tear gas during a June 12 Democracy Day rally in Abuja, Nigeria June 12, 2021. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde

Anger over mass kidnappings-for-ransom, a decade-long Islamist insurgency and a crackdown on protesters in Lagos last October have put the country on edge and led to demands for the government to do more to tackle insecurity.

There was a heavy police presence in the country's two major cities as several hundred protesters gathered on Democracy Day, which celebrates Nigeria's move to civilian rule more than 20 years ago.

Reuters witnesses saw police firing guns into the air and tear gas into the crowds to disperse demonstrators who held placards and chanted "Buhari must go", a reference to President Muhammadu Buhari.

Police did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

(Reporting by Seun Sanni in Lagos and Afolabi Sotunde and Abraham Achirga in Abuja; Additional reporting by Camillus Eboh; Writing by Libby George; Editing by Helen Popper)

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