Global rights group, Amnesty International, has knocked the Nigerian military the accidental bombing that killed over 85 villagers and injured several others at Tudun Biri village in the Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State on Sunday.
The rights group described as “unacceptable”, the “persistent unlawful killings of civilians” by military air strikes.
Amnesty accused the Nigerian military of cover-up and demand that justice be served on the matter.
“The Nigerian military has since put out two contradictory explanations. An initial statement by the Nigerian army in Kaduna said the air strike was a mistake. This was followed by a statement from Nigeria’s Defence Headquarters claiming that suspected bandits had embedded with civilians.
The victims were buried in two mass graves on 4 December 2023.
“The Nigerian military’s recklessness is a result of the authorities’ consistent failure to hold them to account for a long list of such atrocities. These unlawful killings of civilians cannot be swept under the carpet,” said Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, Isa Sanusi.
Amnesty said the President Bola Tinubu administration must promptly set up an independent inquiry into Tudun Biri village air strike and, where these investigations indicate criminal responsibility, ensure that those suspected to be responsible are brought to justice in fair trials. “Victims and their families must be provided with access to justice and effective remedies,” the group said.
Amnesty said air strikes with deadly consequences for civilians are becoming routine and the ugly trend must be stopped.
On 18 December 2022 an air strike by the Nigerian Air Force killed 64 people in Mutumji village in Zamfara state. On 24 January 2023 a military air strike killed more than 40 herders in Doma region of Nasarawa state. And, in January 2023, dozens of vigilantes were killed by a military air strike in Galadima Kogo in Niger state, central Nigeria. This is the deadliest air strike since the 2017 air strike on Rann village which killed 115 civilians.
