Genocidal Onslaught: Over 45,000 Innocent Lives Lost to Nigerian Security Forces

Genocidal Onslaught: Over 45,000 Innocent Lives Lost to Nigerian Security Forces In a revealing report released in 2024 by the International...

Genocidal Onslaught: Over 45,000 Innocent Lives Lost to Nigerian Security Forces

In a revealing report released in 2024 by the International Society for Civil Liberty and Rule of Law (Intersociety), the alarming patterns of extrajudicial violence carried out by Nigerian security agencies—including the Army, Navy, and Police—since 2015 have been comprehensively documented.

The summary of this investigation highlights a disturbing truth: these security forces, along with paramilitary groups and state-sponsored vigilantes, initiated their aggressive campaign against innocent civilians in the South-East region, subsequently intensifying their operations under the pretense of combating alleged Biafra agitators.

The findings are staggering. The report estimates that more than 32,000 civilians have been killed, either through overt executions or forced disappearances, with many thousands more unaccounted for, likely lost to illicit detentions in military facilities across northern Nigeria. Moreover, over 300 Igbo communities have faced destruction, leading to the displacement of approximately 180,000 individuals. Approximately 6,000 civilian homes and properties, valued at over N450 billion Naira, have been obliterated due to military assaults.

It's clear that the brutal tactics used by the federal government against the East are not new but rather a continuation of a grim history. a mass extermination agenda that began in 1970, during the 30 month genocidal conflict instigated by the federal military in response to a desperate bid for self preservation by the region.

Since the early 2000s, following a resurgence of the Biafra self-determination movement fueled by longstanding political and economic marginalization, successive Nigerian administrations have waged a covert war against the Eastern populace, masking their actions under the guise of suppressing dissent.

The Tinubu administration currently continues the harsh policies of its predecessors, targeting members of the Eastern population and unjustly profiling them as part of the IPOB movement. 

Despite the government's misguided attempts to quash the legitimate pursuit of Biafran self-determination through force, the agitation only seems to be gaining more support. The foundational grievances that revived the desire for Biafra have not only gone unaddressed but have been exacerbated.

With thousands of Igbo and Biafran youths, including IPOB leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, unjustly imprisoned and the presence of military forces across the East, along with rampant extortion, the struggle for Biafran self-determination will only continue to strengthen.

The right to self-determination is a legitimate and globally recognized principle. Therefore, the resolution of the Biafra issue must come through formal political efforts rather than through hostile actions.

The federal government is essentially engaged in a genocidal campaign against a people who have endured nothing but death and suffering since their forced incorporation into the Nigerian state by colonial powers. It is crucial for the international community to urge the Nigerian government to abandon its destructive tactics and adopt more constructive approaches to resolving the Nigeria-Biafra conflict.

Releasing the thousands of political prisoners held indefinitely in military facilities and providing compensation for lost lives and properties could serve as an initial step in addressing the concerns behind the agitation, paving the way for further constructive processes.

— Family Writers Press International