The Federal High Court in Abuja granted an application by the Department of State Services (DSS) to fast-track proceedings in the trial of Khalid Al-Barnawi, the alleged mastermind of the 26 August 2011 bombing of the United Nations building in Abuja, and four others.
Represented by counsel Alex Iziyon, the DSS requested an accelerated hearing, stating it was ready to ensure timely determination of the case. Defence lawyers did not oppose the application.
Under the ruling, parties will view video recordings presented by the DSS to demonstrate that the defendants made their extrajudicial statements voluntarily, contrary to their claims.
Justice Nwite adjourned the matter until 23 and 24 October for continuation of the trial-within-trial.
Al-Barnawi faces terrorism charges alongside Mohammed Bashir Saleh, Umar Mohammed Bello (a.k.a. Datti), Mohammed Salisu, and Yakubu Nuhu (a.k.a. Bello Maishayi).
The defendants allegedly belonged to the Ansaru terrorist group, Jama’atu Ansarul Muslimina Fi Biladis Sudan, and conspired to commit acts of terrorism between 2011 and 2013 in Sokoto, Kebbi, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, and other northern states.
They are also accused of attacking a maximum-security prison in Abuja in 2012, freeing dozens of inmates.
The DSS arrested Al-Barnawi in Lokoja, Kogi State, in April 2016, five years after the UN bombing. The United States had earlier placed a $5 million (£3.5m) bounty on his head, labelling him one of three Nigerian “specially designated global terrorists.”
The UN building attack, Nigeria’s first strike on an international organisation, killed more than 20 people and injured over 70.
His trial, which began after his arrest in 2016, stalled repeatedly due to legal and administrative challenges. Ansaru, linked ideologically to al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, has also been accused of killing numerous Westerners.