The Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) has vowed to challenge the court order obtained by the Federal Government proscribing its activities, Igbere TV reports.

IMN spokesman, Ibrahim Musa, confirmed this on Wednesday, saying “we will be in court challenging the proscription”.

On the accusation by a rival Shiite group, Al-Thaqalayn Cultural Foundation, that IMN was a fake organisation, Musa alleged that the leader of the group, Hamza Lawal, was a government agent out to destabilise IMN.

“Hamza Lawal had failed woefully to create division within the ranks of the Islamic Movement in the past, and the government,” Musa said.

“He is not worth being dignified with a response. He has been in the corridors of power for a while now and on their payroll to distract attention, cause confusion, and are known by various names in the past – Shia traitors, commercial Shia and the rest.

“When in 2015 government massacred members of the Islamic Movement, they celebrated and rushed to form another organization called SHIMAN to be an umbrella organization to finalize the ‘burial of IMN’ with government support, so as to deceive the public into believing that Shi’ites is not the target.”

He added: “These same ‘Shia-groups’ were again the ones who earlier this year came out to endorse Buhari for another term. Thus Hamza Lawal and his cultural group are a distraction not worth our time.”