DHQ Rejects Amnesty’s Claim Of Extrajudicial Killings In S/East

…Says 81 Suspects Arrested, 37 Rescued In Six Days

The Director of Defence Media Operations, Maj.-Gen. Markus Kangye, on Thursday, dismissed an Amnesty International report that accused the Nigerian military of carrying out extrajudicial killings in the South-East.

Kangye spoke at the biweekly update on military activities across operational theatres in Abuja.

The report, titled “A Decade of Impunity: Attacks and Unlawful Killings in South East Nigeria”, alleged that unlawful killings, torture, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests, and displacement were enabled by the Nigerian government.

It stated that the security challenges gained momentum when the authorities began a brutal clampdown on pro-Biafra protests in August 2015.

According to the Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, Isa Sanusi, rampaging gunmen, state-backed paramilitary outfits, vigilantes, criminal gangs, and cult groups committed atrocities across the South-East between January 2021 and December 2024.

“The Nigerian authorities’ brutal clampdown on pro-Biafra protests from August 2015 plunged the South-East region into an endless cycle of bloodshed, which has created a climate of fear and left many communities vulnerable.

“Assassinations of prominent personalities and attacks on highways, security personnel, and facilities are chilling reminders of the region’s insecurity,” he said.

Reacting to these claims, Kangye insisted that the military operates professionally and within the law.

“The Armed Forces of Nigeria are not involved in any extrajudicial killings. Such allegations are unfounded and misleading.”

He urged Nigerians to recognise the sacrifices of troops in the field, adding that the “troops gave their today for a safer country of tomorrow.”

Providing further updates on military operations nationwide, Kangye reported that troops killed several terrorist commanders, rescued 37 kidnapped victims, and arrested dozens of suspects during six days of coordinated missions ending August 13.

He said the Joint Task Forces in the North-East, North-West, North-Central, South-East, and South-South—supported by air and ground components, other security agencies, and hybrid forces—carried out the operations.

“Our troops have continued to demonstrate courage, resilience, and determination to dismantle terrorist networks, defeat insurgency and banditry, and suppress all forms of criminality. The terrorists’ will to fight has been shattered,” he said.

In the North-East, Kangye said troops of Operation Hadin Kai killed several Boko Haram and ISWAP commanders in Limankara, Pulka, Kareto, and other locations across Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe States.

The operation also led to the arrest of “16 suspected terrorists, the rescue of five hostages, and the recovery of weapons, vehicles, motorcycles, and improvised explosive devices (IEDs)”, which were safely detonated.

In the North-West, troops under Operation Fasin Yamma killed multiple terrorists, “arrested 11 suspects, and freed 17 kidnapped victims in Katsina, Sokoto, Zamfara, Kebbi, and Kaduna States”.

Security forces also intercepted a suspected gunrunner in the Jama’a Local Government Area of Kaduna State as he attempted to conceal an AK-47 rifle and ammunition inside a sack of animal feed.

Kangye said the Troops of Operation Whirl Stroke in the North-Central engaged armed groups in Benue, Taraba, Kogi, and the Federal Capital Territory, killing “several assailants, arresting 13 suspects, and rescuing nine hostages”.

He also noted that security personnel apprehended two notorious arms dealers in Lokoja and recovered a large cache of ammunition from an abandoned extremist camp in Taraba State.

Under Operation Delta Safe, troops seized “24,575 litres of stolen crude oil, 9,140 litres of illegally refined diesel, and 2,605 litres of petrol”.

Kangye said South-South operations also destroyed illegal refining sites, seized boats and storage tanks, and led to the arrest of “34 suspects linked to oil theft, cultism, and kidnapping”.

In the South-East, troops of Operation UDO KA arrested six suspected IPOB/ESN members and a kidnapper in Imo, Anambra, and Ebonyi States.

He noted that the operation also led to the recovery of arms, ammunition, and vehicles from the suspects.