A Nigerian army drone mistakenly killed 85 people and injured 66 others this Sunday in Tudun Biri, a town in Kaduna State, in the north of the country. The Nigerian president, Bola Tinubu, acknowledged this Tuesday that an accidental bombing had occurred and announced the opening of an investigation. “It was a very unfortunate, worrying and painful incident,” he said. The army was carrying out a routine operation against armed criminal groups operating in this area.
The events occurred on Sunday. Dozens of residents of Tudun Biri, including women and children, were participating in a Muslim celebration when a drone from the Nigerian military forces attacked them. The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) reported this Tuesday in a statement that “the northwest zone office has received information from local authorities that 85 bodies have been buried so far while the search continues.” The army initially denied its involvement and did not report the number of victims, but later admitted being behind the attack.
NEMA itself has reported that another 66 people were hospitalized and that it was negotiating with local traditional chiefs to try to calm things down and be able to enter the town. President Tinubu has described the incident as “very unfortunate, worrying and painful” and has expressed his “outrage and sadness at the tragic loss of Nigerian lives” in a statement.
“The Nigerian Army was carrying out a routine military operation against terrorists (…), but unfortunately the town of Tudun Biri was attacked. Rescue operations continue. Dozens of people have been evacuated to hospital by the authorities,” said the Minister of the Interior of Kaduna State, Samuel Aruwan. For more than ten years, Nigeria has been waging an undeclared war in the central and northern states of the country against armed groups of criminals, called “bandits” or “terrorists,” who kidnap, murder and rob civilians through use of extreme violence.
Amnesty International strongly condemns air strikes by the Nigerian Army launched on Tudun Biri village in Igabi LGA of Kaduna state. Over 120 civilians have been killed and dozens injured. Launching air raids is not a legitimate law enforcement method by anyone’s standard.
— Amnesty International Nigeria (@AmnestyNigeria) December 4, 2023
The Nigerian section of Amnesty International has published on its air strikes. The first of them caused about 64 deaths on December 18, 2022 in the town of Mutumji, Zamfara State, and the second occurred on January 24, 2023 in the town of Doma, in Nasarawa State, with the result of about 40 deaths. “Nigerian authorities must investigate these airstrikes and, where these investigations indicate criminal liability, prosecute those responsible and bring them to justice for a fair trial,” the organization said.
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A wave of indignation has swept across Nigeria after learning of the army’s responsibility for this attack. Opposition leader Atiku Abubakar has expressed his sadness at the news. “Ironically, the victims of this unfortunate incident were celebrating the anniversary of the Maulud. The incidence of miscalculated airstrikes is acquiring a worrying dimension in the country. We need to develop counterinsurgency strategies that isolate civilians from tragic incidents of this nature. I call on the authorities to initiate a thorough investigation into this tragedy,” he lamented through X.
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