Some of the protesters who carried the Russian flags told this newspaper that they did so to spite the Nigerian government.
Nigerian authorities have arrested seven Polish citizens over their suspected roles in the brandishing of Russian flags in the northern Nigerian city of Kano, officials have said.
The spokesperson of the State Security Service (SSS), Peter Afunanya, confirmed the arrests of the Polish citizens to Reuters but said Polish citizens were not being targeted. He said the suspects were arrested as part of efforts to enforce security in Kano, where anti-government protests have gone violent and curfew has been imposed.
Reuters also quoted Stanislaw Gulinski, the Polish consul to Nigeria, as confirming the arrests at a meeting he and other diplomats had with Nigeria's foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar.
PREMIUM TIMES reported the display of Russian flags by some protesters in northern Nigerian cities such as Kano and Kaduna.
Some of the protesters who carried the flags told this newspaper that they did so to spite the Nigerian government, which they accuse of implementing policies that have worsened the economic situation for millions of citizens.
The Russian embassy in Nigeria denied any responsibility, saying in a statement that the flags are personal choices of the protesters and "do not reflect any official position or policy of the Russian Government."
Nigerian protesters carrying Russian flags over the weekend were openly calling for a coup d'état by the army.
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The government has described the display of foreign flags and the calls for military coup by some protesters as treason, saying such individuals would be arrested.
Scores of such protesters and the tailors who sewed the flags have been arrested.
Under Nigerian law, treason is a capital offence. The police said individuals engaged in the act will be treated and "charged accordingly."
Also on Wednesday, the Nigerian government formally asked the country's diplomatic community to refrain from interfering in the ongoing nationwide protests.
"Government will take appropriate action against any foreign entity residing in Nigeria found to have directly or indirectly supported protesters by whatever means or seeks to interfere in the internal affairs," Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf Tuggar said at a meeting with ambassadors and other diplomats.
Young Nigerians have been protesting since 1 August against economic hardship and hunger in the country. The protests, which turned deadly in at least six northern states, have seen 22 people killed so far during demonstrations, Amnesty International said, with more protesters killed in Kano, the rights group said. The police have, however, disputed the figures.
