Claim: A viral video shows a protest in Abuja demanding the release of Nnamdi Kanu.
Verdict: False. The video is not from Nigeria, but from Nepal during a protest against the government of KP Sharma Oli.
Full Text
Since the arrest of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), in 2021, there have been several protests both within and outside Nigeria calling for his release.
Nnamdi, who was first arrested in 2015 on charges of treasonable felony and later granted bail in 2017, was re-arrested and extradited to Nigeria from Kenya in June 2021 after fleeing the country.
He has since been held by the Department of State Security Service while facing trial for terrorism and related offences at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
On Monday, October 20, 2025, a protest tagged #FreeNnamdiKanuNow led by activist Omoyle Sowore took place in Abuja. The protest called for Kanu’s unconditional release.
Shortly after, a TikTok video showed a large crowd walking and waving flags.
The video captioned “Happening live in Abuja” was accompanied by hashtags such as #FreeNnamdiKanu, #Biafra, and #NnamdiKanu.
The claim as of Oct. 20, 2025, had gained 56,800 likes, 1,618 comments, 5447 shares, and 3,134 bookmarks on TikTok.
The video can also be found on YouTube and Facebook.
The video’s comment section reflected divided opinions. A user, @youngpapa101, refuted the claim, saying, “I watched this video 3 years ago, and it is not in Nigeria.”
Another user, @officialmonie88, who believed the claim, commented, “Lord Jesus, I pray for a successful one, free our hero Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.”
Given the video’s virality and the conflicting comments, DUBAWA decided to fact-check the claim.
Verification
DUBAWA reviewed the video and noticed that the crowd was waving red flags with a blue border and white symbols in the centre.
A keyword search revealed that the flag belongs to Nepal, a country in South Asia.
We conducted a reverse image search of several keyframes from the video using Google Lens and InVID tools. This revealed the video had been uploaded earlier by accounts based in Nepal.
We traced the earliest online version of the video to Sept. 8, 2025, when thousands of young people gathered in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, to protest corruption and unemployment under the government of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli.
Comparing the viral clip with the videos online from the time of the protest, DUBAWA found matching details, including the shape of the protest ground, bridges, and buildings in the background.
The buildings are also similar. The protest, known locally as the “Gen Z Revolution,” garnered widespread coverage in Nepalese and regional Asian media outlets, including The Kathmandu Post and The Himalayan Times.
While reports were confirming a protest yesterday in Abuja, no credible Nigerian media outlets reported a mass protest of that nature in Abuja as claimed.
Also, the type of flag and attire seen in the footage do not align with those typically associated with IPOB or Nigerian demonstrators.
Conclusion
The viral TikTok video claiming to show a protest in Abuja for the release of Nnamdi Kanu is false. The findings indicate that the footage originates from Nepal, not Nigeria.
The video depicts a protest known as the Gen Z Revolution held in Kathmandu against corruption in the government of KP Sharma Oli.