Kingsley Kanu urges UK PM Keir Starmer to intervene in his brother Nnamdi Kanu’s case, accusing the government of inaction despite a Nigerian court ruling confirming his extraordinary rendition.

The brother of a British national detained in Nigeria following an extraordinary rendition has accused the UK government of abandoning him and urged Prime Minister Keir Starmer to take action in defense of British citizens.

Kingsley Kanu, the brother of Nnamdi Kanu—the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipob), a separatist movement banned in Nigeria—expressed frustration over the UK government’s inaction regarding his brother’s case.

“Up to this day, both the previous and the current government have failed to take a stand and call on the Nigerian government to stop,” Kingsley said in an interview from Germany. “They should wake up and defend British citizens. I find it very astonishing.”

Nnamdi, a dual national and father of two, had been sought by Nigerian authorities since 2015 after establishing Radio Biafra, a digital radio station, from his London home. The station emerged around the time mass Biafra secessionist protests erupted in Nigeria—the first since the country’s civil war.

In 2017, while out on bail, Nnamdi fled Nigeria after security forces stormed his residence in an operation called “Python Dance,” during which at least 28 members of Ipob were reportedly killed, according to court documents.

In 2021, Nigerian authorities arrested him in Kenya and transported him back to Nigeria in what the UN, a Nigerian court, and his legal team have described as an act of extraordinary rendition—an unlawful inter-state transfer. He has since pleaded not guilty to 15 criminal charges, including terrorism and treason, seven of which he still faces.

Kingsley Kanu filed a legal challenge against the British government over its handling of the case, but it was ultimately dismissed. However, the judge acknowledged that the Nigerian court had ruled Nnamdi was subjected to extraordinary rendition—despite multiple former UK foreign secretaries refusing to recognize this.

In 2023, a UK Court of Appeal judgment stated that the government's position “might well be different” if the Nigerian Supreme Court upheld a ruling by the Nigerian Court of Appeal affirming Nnamdi’s extraordinary rendition. With the Nigerian Supreme Court now having confirmed this in December 2023, Kingsley believes there is a clear legal pathway for the UK government to intervene. However, he has yet to receive any response from Starmer—the fourth prime minister since his brother’s detention.

A Foreign Office spokesperson commented: “We are providing consular support to Mr. Kanu and remain in contact with his family and legal representatives. We have raised his case with the Nigerian authorities.”

Kingsley confirmed that Nnamdi receives monthly consular visits and that he communicates with him through lawyers and a younger brother. However, his family and legal team continue to raise concerns over his treatment, highlighting that he has been held largely in solitary confinement, under poor conditions, and without access to medical treatment for a heart condition.

“The high court and Nigeria have spoken,” Kingsley said. “We have to stand on that, we have to implement that.”

The Nigerian embassy has been approached for comment.