The military is battling what it calls “terrorists” and “bandits” across the north of Nigeria. Image: AFP
‘Mistakenly’ killed during religious event in Nigeria by airstrike.
An airstrike occurred on Sunday during a Muslim religious gathering in Kaduna state, north-west Nigeria, killing at least 85 civilians, according to the local emergency management authorities.
A “bombing mishap” killed the people, President Bola Tinubu declared, declining to provide a dead toll.
According to Uba Sani, the governor of the state, a military drone “targeting terrorists and bandits” “mistakenly killed” the individuals.
Many more were injured.
“Needless tragedy” was the description given by the defence ministry, which went on to say that “inadvertently affected members of the community” were victims of what was supposed to be a normal operation against extremists.
Armed criminals and terrorists have been operating in northern Nigeria, attacking towns and kidnapping citizens for ransom for years. The Nigerian military has been combating these groups for years.
Credible intelligence regarding the presence of “terrorists” in the vicinity was the basis for Sunday’s bombing, according to defence spokesperson Maj Gen Edward Buba.
“A comprehensive and exhaustive investigation into the incident is being sought by the authorities, and it is imperative that everyone remain calm during this time of crisis,” stated President Tinubu’s office.
An probe has been requested by the governor as well.
On Sunday night, when the people of Tundun Biri gathered for a religious event, an airstrike occurred.
“The Northwest Zonal Office has received details from the local authorities that 85 dead bodies have so far been buried while search is still ongoing,” said a statement from the National Emergency Management Agency in Abuja, the federal capital.
“It is worthy of note that the casualties ranged from children, women and the elderly.” Estimates range from thirty to over eighty-five, but the official death toll is still unknown.
There were two assaults, according to one eyewitness.
“The aircraft dropped a bomb at the venue, it destroyed and killed our people including women and children,” according to him.
Some of us who had gone to retrieve the remains of the first blast’s victims were hit by the second bomb. Nearly thirty-four members of my family perished, and sixty-six others are in critical condition at the hospital.
According to a witness who spoke with the reporter, there were victims lying about following the explosion.
“Some women died holding their babies, some of the babies survived while others died along with their mothers,” according to her.
While fighting militia groups, or bandits as they are known locally, in Nigeria’s northwest, the military has allegedly caused civilian deaths in the past.
The gangs have been designated as “terrorists” by the authorities.
In 2021, a raid on a terrorist camp in northeast Nigeria by a Nigerian fighter plane mistakenly killed at least 20 fisherman.
A study by the research company SB Morgen stated that since 2017, more than 300 individuals had been killed in unintentional strikes by the Nigerian army.