Daji Sani in Yola
Six Adamawa communities comprising Lawaru, Dong, Nzoruwe, Pulum, Kodomti and Shaforon in Demsa/Numan Local Government Areas of the state are set to drag the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) to the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the bombings of their communities unjustly on December 4, 2017, when herdsmen launched an attack on them.
The communities were accusing the NAF of alleged human rights abuse, genocide and conspiracy with herdsmen to kill several people, destroy their valuables as well displace many including women and children from their ancestral homes.
In a press statement signed by six representatives of the affected communities and read to Journalists in Yola at the conference hall of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) by their spokesman Lawrence Jonathan, the communities said after thorough investigation they have decided to seek justice through legitimate means by dragging the NAF to the ICC since the government appears reluctant on the allegations raised on the issues.
“The 4th December 2017 attacks has shown clear manifestation of complicity by government and security agencies. The Numan attacks have thus become the first time in the history of Nigeria that Nigeria Air Force drones, helicopters and fighter jets to provide aerial cover for Fulani terrorists (herdsmen) to kill many people and destroy property on behalf of a terror group.
“The hidden narrative in this case is that the herders were avenging the killings of their kith and kin and so they should be “assisted†with such unlawful excessive use of force for the Bwatiye communities to learn a bloody lesson,†he read
According to him “it was a clear human rights abuse and genocide committed by the Nigerian Air force over air raids on communities around Numan during clashes between farmers and herdsmen on December 4, 2017.”
However the Nigerian Air force’s Director of public relations, Air Vice Marshal Olatokunbo Adesanya had earlier denied any damage resulted from NAF air raids on the five communities which are around Numan.
NAF contrary to claims by Amnesty International and the communities that the EC 135 attack helicopter and an Alfa jet deployed to Numan in response to attacks by “hoodlums†on the area caused significant destruction against fleeing villagers, said it was not true that its aircraft neither set any of the villages on fire nor caused the deaths of any villager.
But Jonathan dismissed the response of the NAF saying it was a fabricated lie to cover up their tracks, adding that they agreed with the reports of Amnesty International on January 30, that the air raids of December 4, 2017 on Lawaru, Dong, Kodomti, Nzuruwei and Shaforon caused “significant destructionsâ€.
“Although Amnesty International reported that ‘it was not possible to establish how much of the deaths and destruction was caused by the direct result of the air attacks or attributable to the attack by herdsmen. But eyewitnesses accounts and rockets remnants found in lawaru, Dong, Nzoruwe, Pulum, Shaforon, Kodomti and others after the raids clearly established the facts.â€
He said they will go to any length to ensure justice over the killings carried out by NAF against hapless citizens being attacked by herdsmen.
“We would spare no efforts to bring justice to those killed by the genocidal attacks against our people by the Nigeria Air force, even if that means going to the International criminal court to cause further investigations into the human rights abuse and for the whole world to know the truth of what happened.
“That our situation is beyond farmer /herdsmen clashes because NAF cannot come into the situation and bomb people being attacked, killing maiming and destroying their buildings. Our problem is different, there’s a general plan of genocide against our people (Bwatiye) and that is why we want Nigerians and the world to know.â€
The communities also demanded that an international investigation be conducted into the attacks to unveil the mystery behind the involvement of the NAF.
