“The Army acted on intelligence, but missed….” The Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, said this while reacting to another boner and bloody bombing on the sprawling Tudun-Biri village in Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State, North West Nigeria on December 3, 2023. The CDS’s response while being featured on a television interview programme last week was down-to-earth, as virtually all the past air assaults, which consumed lives and destroyed properties, were blamed on “missed targets”, albeit credible intelligence! Very unpleasant!
The blast, which claimed not less than 88 lives and injured scores, was not the first by our Armed Forces.
Be it the Nigerian Army or Nigerian Air Force. Also, it’s significant to note that the death figure confirmed by the National Emergency Management Agency was estimated, considering the previous and successive accounts of casualty toll reported by the residents and survivors.
Prior to reeling out the sad former bloodbath under similar circumstances, sharing a series of Army hierarchy reactions to the fresh killings is very key. The CDS, while on the TV interview, explained that the pattern of movement of the civilians, who were affected, looked almost like that of the terrorists, who had been operating heavily around the area and causing the Army to engage them.
Musa pointed out: “The Army has air operations. We have the Army aviation, the Air Force has its own, and the drones are also enablers that we use for modern warfare. The pilots are well-trained and well prepared for the operations. I just want to remind individuals that it is a war we’re fighting and, therefore, we make mistakes. As human beings, we all make mistakes and this is just one of them. It was not deliberate. They went on after receiving information of a threat of attack within the general area and they saw the traits of individuals moving similar to the way the terrorists also move, and then they went to congregate under a tree, just the way terrorists do. And I think from there, they felt it was time for them to act and then they reacted. It was based on intelligence, but I think they just missed it….”
Still, the CDS pledged that the Army would make amends, look back, identify where the mistakes came from and make sure that similar attacks are checked and avoided.
The Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja, during his condolence visit to Tudun-Biri community and Dangaladima Zazau, the District Head of Rigasa, Architect Aminu Idris, reiterated that the village has become haven for suspected terrorists. He commented on the valid intelligence received by the Army and admitted blunder in the attack approach.
Lagbaja established that Tudun-Biri and adjoining villages were infested with armed bandits, who allegedly terrorised the communities, until troops of the Nigerian Army launched operations to sanitise the area and make it habitable. The COAS during his visit to the bereaved enclave recounted that troops were carrying out aerial patrols when they observed a group of people (worshipers celebrating Maulud), but were wrongly analysed and misinterpreted to be similar to the pattern of bandits, before the drone struck. Error of judgement!
Tudun-Biri was the latest. Sadly, many villages and communities in Nigeria have been hit by bloody miscalculated bombing in the past. According to a report by The Daily Trust, it is shocking to know that no fewer than 416 unarmed citizens have been killed by accidental airstrikes of the Nigerian military in a space of nine years in 16 communities, all in the northern part of the country.
For instance, in Ajia community in Birnin Magaji Local Government Area of Zamfara State, North West Nigeria, no fewer than 11 persons died after an accidental military airstrike on April 11, 2019. On September 16, 2021, nine farmers were killed in Buwari village of Yobe State by the NAF troops who were pursuing terrorists in the area, while 20 fishermen at Kwatar Daban Mascara in Borno State, under similar circumstances, lost their lives on September 26, the same year!
Checks also revealed that no fewer than 60 people were left dead on December 17, 2022 at Mutunji community, Dausadau Emirate in Maru Local Government Area of Zamfara State, North West Nigeria. In January 2023, 37 deaths were recorded during accidental aerial bombardment, at Nasarawa-Benue State, Niger border, in Doma Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, North Central Nigeria.
There was another bombing in April 2022, in Niger State, North Central Nigeria. Then, a NAF fighter jet fired a bomb, killing six children! The eruption which occurred in Kurebe village in Shiroro Local Government Area was said to have been targeted at suspected terrorists. Another error shelling occurred in June 2022, specifically at Kunkuna rural settlement in the Safana Local Government Area of Katsina State, North West Nigeria. Again, it was a NAF fighter jet that was responsible for killing one, while 13 villagers sustained various degrees of injuries from the same attack.
Still in Borno State, on January 17, 2017, a miscalculated airstrike hit an Internally Displaced Persons camp in Rann. The strike left 52 people killed and 120 injured! Again, on April 13, 2020, 17 lives, including children, perished when a NAF fighter jet smashed Sakokoku village in Damboa Local Government Area of Borno State.
Again, in Borno State on February 28, 2018, 20 civilians were killed by error airstrike in Daglun community. In the same State, specifically in Gajigana village and Mainok, tragedy occurred on July 2, 2019 and April 25, 2021 when 13 civilian casualties and 30 soldiers respectively died due to airstrikes from the NAF troops.
These accidental killings should and must stop! Therefore, the authorities should initiate moves to check and eradicate the unwholesome trend. It’s against this background that we support not only the call for a thorough questioning of the fresh offensive, but for us to take a step further for a speedy prosecution or trial of the culprits and award of stiffer sanctions against the bad eggs. We commend President Bola Tinubu’s prompt call for investigation on the bloodshed. Still, we stress that his worries should go beyond mere directive, rather, should be extended to nose for details and follow that up with a pragmatic step towards correcting and eradicating the tradition of missed and accidental bloody raids.
On this, the COAS caught our attention – with respect to his call to having a critical look at possible machine or human error in the latest incursion. Speaking on investigation, Lagbaja announced that he has ordered a thorough inquiry into the incident to ascertain and identify areas of deficiency that led to the “inadvertent disaster”. More unique was his directive to overarching facts that will guide the Nigeria Army in “meticulously and professionally seeking and applying lasting solutions to identified lapses and deficiencies in both the human and Artificial Intelligence variables that will forestall future recurrence”.
In the same vein, we appreciate and support all stakeholders – individuals and organisations that have been calling for deep questioning of the firing and sanctions against the culprits. This again has bearing in COAS tactical response to diffuse insinuation that the bombing was targeted at a particular religious faithful. Lagbaja, during his visit to the community maintained that the area was a mixed community – of both Muslims and Christians and that the victims belonged to both faiths. The authorities must be watchful of possible reappraisal, skirmishes and ensuing loss of lives and property.
For instance, the Islamic Forum (a coalition of Tijjanniya Qadiriya, Shiites and the Izala sects) in Kano, last week Wednesday condemned the bombing, called for compensation for the victims, their families and more importantly, demanded investigation into the killing. In this matter, authorities should not underrate anybody and no party should be taken for granted.
Looking ahead to halt casualties always recorded after accidental offensives, four key variables come to mind. The first which we observed was missing in all attacks is lack of synergy between the armed forces and local security stakeholders. No matter the amount of defence put up by the COAS on the latest blasts, the collaboration was zero. From the available narratives, it was only the Army that received the intelligence; single-handedly conducted the surveillance and when it was suitable, it struck, but unfortunately, wrongly!
Overtime, synergy has proven to be very tactical, effective and highly productive. We recall during the time of former President Muhammadu Buhari when a robust collaboration within the armed forces led to discovery of den, bombing, killing and arresting of petroleum pipelines vandals and other criminals at Arepo/Isheri creek, in Ogun State, South West Nigeria. This also happened in other parts of the country.
Also, in early years of Buhari’s administration when Boko Haram terrorists demonstrated more effrontery in the North East, the Army, under the Multinational Joint Task Force with support from local vigilantes made many exploits. They identified the abodes of insurgents, smoked them out, killed many and forcefully chased the criminals out of people’s domains.
There shouldn’t be rivalry within the Armed Forces. Instead, what we crave for is exceptional symbiotic relationships and collaboration to wage war against insurgents, criminalities, bringing down terrorists and helping to avoid missed and accidental attacks on innocent civilians in their abodes.
Other variables include the need for military men to be patriotic, disciplined and professional in discharge of their national obligations and duties. And as we have mentioned earlier, the need for speedy trial and punishing those who perpetrate illegality.
More importantly, the Army and NAF should be extraordinarily cautious and professional while carrying out their anti-terrorists operations. The two security agencies should be mindful that each time they goof, there are consequences, apart from the unwarranted loss of lives and other valuables. First, the off-target invasions smack justification for the huge investment government is incurring on arms and ammunition procurement, as well as on manpower training and development of the services’ personnel. Regrettably too, the howlers have continuously discredited the armed forces, giving it a bad image and poor rating, both at local and international levels.
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In our recent Editorial commentary on security funding, we published that as of September 2022, the Federal Government has spent over N6 trillion on security in the last 11 years. Added to that, President Tinubu recently signed a N2.18 trillion supplementary budget for the outgoing 2023 fiscal year. Out of the figure, the sum of N575.6 billion special funding was voted to boost the war against insecurity. Also, a total of N184.25 billion was allocated for the purchase of military equipment, arms and ammunition. Whether the spending is adequate or otherwise, we have seen efforts being made towards stemming insecurity, so, what is now left is for those in charge of executing our security policies as we demanded was for them to be prudent and accountable. And in this context, for them to be more collaborative, cautious and professional.
While we highly commend the Armed Forces of Nigeria for its achievements in securing the country against both internal and external aggressions, we say we have had enough of the excuses when it comes to error bombing. Nigerians are tired of losing precious lives and family members to accidental bombings and attacks!
