Nigerian Army troops launched a morning raid on the Igbomotoru community in Bayelsa State, setting ablaze several houses and reportedly causing the deaths of approximately 11 individuals.
The assault, conducted by soldiers arriving in five gunboats, targeted three residences suspected to harbor a militant leader linked to the recent killing of military personnel in Delta State.
Ayibakipreye Solomon Clarkson Suobo, a community leader, in a statement urgently appealed to President Bola Tinubu and Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri for intervention. He stressed the disproportionate response, emphasizing that while condemning the prior attack on military personnel, the current military action unjustly targets innocent civilians in a community distant from the site of the prior incident.
Suobo implored all relevant authorities to safeguard lives and property in Igbomotoru 2, highlighting the community’s vulnerability to the ongoing siege. He called upon fellow Nigerians to support their cause and urged the military to adopt a more nuanced approach, emphasizing dialogue over aggression in dealing with unarmed civilians.
The statement reads “I am calling on all security chiefs in Nigeria to please kindly intervene to save lives and property in Igbomotoru 2 community which started about 8am this morning, information reaching me as the CTC member representing the good and peaceful of Igbomotoru ward 6 is very unpleasant. The military is a very trained organisation whose responsibility is to defend its citizens rather than destroy them.
“To buttress further, the news about the brutal killing of military personnel a few days in Delta State is a condemnable act but my current concern is however the intelligence reports are linked. There was need for a better approach rather than attacking and killing innocent indigent people of my community, Igbomotoru 2 that is situated thousands of miles away from Delta State where the gruesome murder of military personnel occurred.
“Please let all agencies of peace in Nigeria arise now to save my peolple now because my community Igbomotoru is under siege as at this moment. Please let all peace loving Nigerians come to our aid, we are being oppressed innocently without an explanation.
“Please I am appealing to the military to apply the carrot and stick approach which is the recommended practice world over when dealing with unarmed civilians.”
Recall that residents of Okuama in the Ughelli South local government area Delta State fled their homes on Friday as soldiers seized control of the area, reportedly setting some houses on fire in retaliation for the killing of 17 soldiers, including senior officers.
According to Channels Television’s report on Saturday, soldiers from the Joint Task Force, led by Major General Jamal Abdusalam, recovered 17 bodies of the soldiers in the Okuama community. Some of the corpses were found decapitated, while others had their stomachs ripped open, with vital organs missing.
The bodies of the commanding officer and two majors were discovered at the NDDC jetty in the community, while others were scattered along the riverbank and on land.
