JILLI MARKET BOMBING AND MATTERS ARISING
Care should be taken to ensure innocent citizens are protected from collateral damage
The airstrike by the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) on a weekly market along the Borno–Yobe border, which reportedly killed dozens of innocent civilians, mostly traders, has continued to elicit outrage and serious concerns. The incident occurred last Saturday evening at Jilli Market, located between Gubio and Geidam local government areas of Borno and Yobe States, respectively. The airstrike was reportedly carried out during a military operation targeting suspected Boko Haram insurgents operating in the area. While the exact number of the dead remains a matter of speculations, Amnesty International and several other organisations have put the figures at more than a hundred. Scores of other people were injured.
We commiserate with the families of all those who lost their lives in this unfortunate incident. We also call on the federal government and authorities in the two affected states to ensure adequate compensation for families of the victims and provide the survivors with necessary care and attention. We also express our commiseration with the military that has lost many gallant officers in recent weeks.
In discharging its constitutional mandate to defend the country and protect its citizens, the military must be careful in the selection of their targets. We are particularly concerned that this tragedy of accidental bombings keeps recurring. In December 2023, no fewer than 88 people were killed, following a military airstrike in Tudun Biri village, Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State. Similar unfortunate strikes killed several people in Rann Borno State in 2017; Sububu area of Zamfara State in 2021; Kurebe village in Shiroro local government of Niger State in April 2022; Southern Kaduna in June 2022; Mutunji community in Zamfara State in December 2022, and Kwatiri, a rural community in Nasarawa State in January 2023.
In condemning the Jilli Market tragedy, Amnesty International says that “launching air raids is not a legitimate law enforcement method by anyone’s standard”, while calling for an immediate and impartial investigation. “Such reckless use of deadly force is unlawful, outrageous and lays bare the Nigerian military’s shocking disregard for the lives of those it supposedly exists to protect”. An investigation would help to identify lapses, especially in terms of training deficits, and how to put more efficient command and control system in place to guarantee double checks on targets before a strike decision is taken.
The military has insisted that the operation was conducted following intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions over the Bindul-Jilli axis. They described the operation as a precision strike on a suspected terrorist enclave, logistics hub, and their collaborators in the affected area. According to military spokesman, Lt Colonel Sani Uba whose statement has been corroborated by Borno Governor Babagana Zulum, the area has long been identified as a movement corridor and convergence point for fighters of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) and other terror groups. While we do not dispute that account, adequate measures should always be taken to protect innocent citizens from such a heavy collateral damage.
Meanwhile, it is time for the federal government to carry out a detailed account of the security challenges across the country, and institute an effective long term strategic plan capable of ending the threat that has plagued the nation for nearly two decades. How Sri Lanka ended its war with the Tamil Tigers provides a model on how to permanently deal with insurgency and banditry in Nigeria. Until we take a bold step to deal with the threat, we will continue to witness such ugly incidents that put the life of our people in peril.
