Amnesty International has raised serious concern over what it described as a growing pattern of civilian deaths caused by military airstrikes in Nigeria.
In a post shared on Monday on its official X handle, the rights group said reckless airstrikes with deadly consequences for civilians have continued to happen.
The group said the situation is unacceptable.
“In Nigeria, reckless military airstrikes with deadly consequences for civilians are becoming routine. This is completely unacceptable,” Amnesty International said.
The organisation cited the airstrike that occurred on December 3, 2023, in Tudun Biri, a village in Kaduna State, where many civilians were killed during a religious gathering.
According to Amnesty, the Nigerian military launched the first airstrike in the evening on the gathering, killing several people. It said a second strike followed about 30 minutes later, hitting those who had rushed to help the victims.
“A second airstrike was launched around 30 minutes later, killing dozens, including those who rushed to the scene to rescue victims of the initial strike,” the group said.
Amnesty International stated that at least 120 people were killed in the incident, describing it as one of the deadliest cases involving civilian casualties.
The group also accused the military of attempting to cover up the incident, saying its response raised more concerns.
“The Nigerian military made desperate attempts to cover up the crime,” it alleged.
It noted that the initial statement from the Nigerian Army described the airstrike as a mistake, but was later followed by another explanation from Defence Headquarters.
“This was bizarrely followed by another statement from Nigeria’s Defence Headquarters, claiming that suspected bandits had embedded with civilians in Tudun Biri community,” Amnesty said.
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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