On November 10, 1995, Nigeria’s military regime executed nine environmental activists.

They were known as the Ogoni Nine. Writer Ken Saro-Wiwa was among them.

Their crime? Leading a peaceful movement in Ogoniland against oil pollution by Shell and other oil giants.

Authorities accused the Ogoni nine of murdering four Ogoni chiefs  but activists say this was to silence their protests against oil pollution.

Their execution sparked global outrage. Shell was forced to suspend operations but no cleanup was done. Decades later, Shell paid $15.5 million in a US settlement to the nine families.

Shell insisted it was a humanitarian gesture and not an admission of guilt.

But Ogoniland remains one of the world's most polluted regions on Earth. Today, rivers are still toxic farmland barren and communities impoverished.

President Bola Tinubu in July 2025 granted a posthumous pardon to the Ogoni Nine. Activists denied the move, criticizing it as inadequate and perpetuating injustice. They demand full exoneration reparations, and a transparent cleanup.

Meanwhile, Shell faces a landmark trial in the UK where Ogoni communities seek justice for decades of oil spills. The UK High Court ruled that Shell can be held liable paving the way for a full trial in 2027.