• Death toll hits 127, injured victims 75
• Relatives intensify search for missing persons in hospital
• ‘Body parts picked on nearby trees, many victims yet to be found’
• Killing of civilians won’t stop fight against terrorism, says Matawalle
Protesters yesterday invaded the National Assembly complex in Abuja, over the killing of scores of innocent citizens by a military drone on Sunday in Kaduna State after a misinterpretation of activities at the scene. This is as the United Nations (UN) deplored the airstrike, which is one of the country’s deadliest military bombing accidents.
The UN Human Rights Office deplored the attack, noting that it was the latest of at least four airstrikes that have resulted in significant civilian fatalities since 2017. The army had acknowledged one of its drones mistakenly struck the village of Tudun Biri as residents celebrated a Muslim festival.
The death toll increased to 127 by Wednesday afternoon, while the number of people hospitalised at the Barau Dikko Specialist Hospital stood at 75.
“While we note that the authorities have termed the civilian deaths as accidental, we call on them to take all feasible steps in future to ensure civilians and civilian infrastructure are protected,” UN Human Rights Office spokesperson, Seif Magango, said in a statement.
“They must review rules of engagement and standard operating procedures to ensure that such incidents do not happen again.”
Bandits have long terrorised parts of northwestern Nigeria, operating from bases deep in forests and raiding villages to loot and kidnap residents for ransom. The military said troops were carrying out aerial patrols when they observed a group of people and “misinterpreted their pattern of activities to be similar to that of bandits”, before the drone strike was launched.
“We are particularly alarmed by reports that the strike was based on the ‘pattern of activities’ of those at the scene, which was wrongly analysed and misinterpreted,” said Magango.
“There are serious concerns as to whether so-called ‘pattern of life’ strikes sufficiently comply with international law. We urge the Nigerian authorities to thoroughly and impartially investigate all alleged violations of international human rights and international humanitarian law, including deaths and injuries from air force strikes, and hold those found responsible to account,” said Magango.
“The government should also provide victims of any unlawful strikes and their families with adequate reparations.”
In Kaduna, many relatives of missing people trooped to the Barau Dikko Specialist Hospital in search of their loved ones. Idris Dahiru, one of the survivors, told newsmen that more people were brought to the hospital yesterday. “This morning, some people were picked up in the forest and brought to the hospital.”
Also speaking, Idris Yalo said: “I’m traumatised. I couldn’t eat since Tuesday. While we were in hospital, one of our relatives affected by the drone attack died.
“We thank the state government. They were kind to our people in the hospital. We were sleeping on the bare floor, but they’ve now provided us with beds and mattresses. Many of the victims have not even been found as body parts were picked on nearby trees.
For more than two hours, demonstrators in Abuja surrounded the National Assembly entry gate, demanding justice for the victims and putting pressure on the Minister of Defence, Abubakar Badaru to fulfill his obligations or step down.
Addressing reporters, leader of the protesters under the aegis of National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), Northwest Zone, and Arewa Youth Movement, Nasir Ishaku, demanded justice for the victims. He declared it intolerable and said innocent Nigerians could no longer be killed, particularly in the country’s north ‘daily.’
To rescue the nation, Ishaku asked the National Assembly to look into the massacre and act decisively.
“We observe with total dismay the lackluster performance of Badaru. As a result, the security situation in the country keeps deteriorating since his (Badaru) inception as Minister of Defence. The lawmakers have a moral obligation to express our grievances because Nigeria is in shambles in terms of security of lives and property, most especially, in Northern Nigeria.
“There is hardly a week without terrorists attacking one community or the other. People have been killed and are still being killed in their homes, farms and even places of worship. Nigeria keeps losing members of the armed forces and the Nigeria Police Force. Our university students are still in captivity and no one knows their whereabouts. These are clear indications that the minister is incompetent to handle that sensitive ministry. Therefore, he should wake up to his responsibilities or resign.”
Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, has vowed that the unintentional killing of civilians by the Nigerian Army in Kaduna will not stop the fight against insurgency and terrorism. The minister made the vow when he visited victims of the airstrike yesterday.
Matawalle, together with the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Dr Ibrahim Kana, led a high-level delegation to the state to convey the Federal Government’s sympathies to the victims.
While denouncing the tragedy, the minister stated that the struggle against insurgency and terrorism would continue.
“We are not going to relent in our fight against terrorism because these criminals must be defeated. We are going to continue fighting the criminals till we succeed against banditry and other criminalities in this country.”
Matawalle, who was also at the Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital in Kaduna, where the injured victims were being treated, stated that the visit was on President Bola Tinubu’s instruction. He assured the Kaduna State government of the Federal Government’s commitment to assisting the victims’ families.
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Army, Senator Abdul’aziz Yar’Adua, has described the accidental drone attack as an honest mistake that should not warrant the resignation of the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja. In an interview with Channels Television on Wednesday, the lawmaker, who instead commended the COAS for his admittance of the mistake, urged that peace be given a chance.
The Senator was reacting to calls by the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) that top military brass resign over the incident that claimed the lives of at least 85 villagers and injured many others at Tudun Biri village. He maintained that precision miscalculations were not exclusive to the Nigerian Army.
The Senator further advised the Kaduna State government to direct members of the Muslim community to always apprise government of any huge gatherings in the state, so that security can be reinforced to avert any such recurrence.
