A recent airstrike by the Nigerian Air Force, aimed at jihadist rebels in the northeast region, tragically hit a local market, leading to the deaths of up to 200 civilians, according to a local chief’s report on Monday.
While officials have confirmed the misfire, further details have yet to be disclosed. Amnesty International has cited survivors who reported that at least 100 individuals were killed during the airstrike on Saturday in a village located in Yobe state, close to the Borno state border, an area that has suffered from an insurgency for over a decade.
Casualties and aftermath
Isa Sanusi, the Nigeria director for Amnesty International, expressed concern, stating,
“We have their pictures and they include children.”
He added that the organization is in contact with those affected, including hospital personnel who provided information about the casualties.
A healthcare worker at the Geidam General Hospital confirmed that at least 23 individuals injured in the airstrike were receiving medical care. This worker chose to remain anonymous due to restrictions on speaking with the press.
Such misfires are not uncommon in Nigeria, where military air raids are frequently conducted against armed groups that occupy extensive forest regions. Since 2017, a reported 500 civilians have lost their lives in similar incidents, as documented by various organizations.
Challenges in military operations
Security analysts attribute these recurrent misfires to deficiencies in intelligence gathering and inadequate coordination among ground troops, air units, and relevant stakeholders. The market, situated near the Borno-Yobe border, is known to be a supply point for Boko Haram militants seeking food.
Abdulmumin Bulama, a member of a civilian security group working with the Nigerian military, mentioned that there had been intelligence indicating that Boko Haram terrorists were nearby and were preparing to attack neighboring communities.
“The intel was shared and the Air Force jet acted based on the credible information,”
Bulama explained.
The Yobe State Government confirmed that a military strike was aimed at a Boko Haram stronghold and acknowledged that “some people…who went to the Jilli weekly market were affected.” The Yobe State Emergency Management Agency also reported an incident causing “casualties affecting some marketers” and announced the deployment of response teams to the site.
In response, Nigeria’s military stated that they successfully struck a “terrorist enclave and logistics hub,” claiming to have killed several militants as they moved on motorcycles. However, they did not elaborate on the misfire and emphasized that motorcycle usage is banned in conflict zones, indicating that such movements are treated with the utmost seriousness.
Amnesty International has called for an independent investigation into this incident, criticizing the military for frequently categorizing civilian casualties as the result of banditry.
Nigeria, the most populous country in Africa, is grappling with a multifaceted security crisis, particularly in the north, where a decade-long insurgency persists alongside multiple armed groups involved in kidnappings for ransom. Prominent among these groups are Boko Haram and its splinter faction affiliated with the Islamic State, known as the Islamic State West Africa Province, as well as the IS-linked Lakurawa group operating in northwestern communities adjacent to the Niger Republic.