ABUJA, Nigeria — Nigerian military officials are pushing back against allegations from a human rights organization that a weekend airstrike resulted in the deaths of 100 civilians at a local marketplace, highlighting ongoing concerns about military operations targeting armed groups in the nation’s unstable northern regions.
According to a Monday statement from Amnesty International, Nigerian forces conducted an aerial attack Sunday on a marketplace located in Tumfa within Zamfara state. Ibrahim Bello Garba, a Red Cross representative in the region, verified the military operation occurred and confirmed that “multiple civilians” lost their lives in the incident.
“In one village alone, 80 people were buried and there is no evidence that any of those people killed is a bandit. They are all civilians. The majority of them are young girls and small boys,” Amnesty International Nigeria director Isa Sanusi told the AP.
While military officials acknowledged conducting aerial operations in the area, they contested the casualty reports. “No verifiable evidence of civilian casualties as being suggested in the media has been established,” according to military sources.
Maj. Gen. Michael Onoja, serving as a military spokesperson, emphasized that “Civilians are not the target, and everything is being done to avoid civilian casualties.” He noted that military operations remain active in the region.
This latest accusation adds to a growing list of incidents involving unintended military strikes affecting civilian populations in the West African country, which continues battling various militant organizations including Boko Haram.
Just last month, Nigerian air force operations resulted in an accidental strike that claimed 100 lives.
Military experts point to insufficient coordination between aerial units and ground forces as a contributing factor to these incidents, which have resulted in hundreds of civilian deaths. Government representatives maintain their operations specifically target members of armed militant groups.
The challenge of distinguishing targets becomes more complex as armed groups frequently operate among civilian populations in their areas of control.
