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Boko Haram: Military Probes Alleged Extra-Judicial Killings
Out-going Controller of Immigration, Adamawa State Command, ACG Abdulrauf Keji (right), bidding farewell to officers of the command at a send-off in his honour in Yola last Friday.
The Defence Headquarters (DHQ), is investigating an Amnesty International video allegation of human rights abuses by the military, the Director of Defence Information, Maj-Gen Chris Olukolade has said.
Briefing journalists in Abuja yesterday, Olukolade said that the military considers human right issues seriously and would never condone any proven case of abuse by its personnel.
He said that the DHQ, in addition to the already existing Joint Investigation Team (JIT), has constituted a team of senior officers and legal cum forensic experts to study the video footage.
He said that the team would also investigate the resultant allegations of infractions in order to ascertain the veracity of the claims with a view to identifying those behind such acts.
Olukolade explained that the investigation would further determine and stimulate necessary legal action against any personnel or anyone found culpable in accordance with the provisions of the law.
He said that the military has over the years demonstrated a pedigree devoid of such acts in several operational theatres in and out of the country.
The director said that the Nigerian Armed Forces cannot condone any action or inaction that tramples on the right to life of any Nigerian.
Olukolade said that the military welcomes the interest being shown by international bodies and civil society groups on observance of human rights in all aspects of the ongoing counter terrorism campaign in the country.
“Despite the highly challenging and peculiar nature of the variables in the operations, the importance of accountability for all actions had remained paramount.
“The Armed Forces of Nigeria is conscious of the nation’s obligation to observe all rules, regulations and commitments in all activities.
“And the military wishes to assure the international community, bodies and citizens that it will not encourage or condone any form of violation,” he said.
Olukolade said that military authorities were deeply concerned about the set of video footage being circulated and which unfortunately has also become reference data for Amnesty International in its report.
“Much as the scenes depicted in these videos are alien to our operations and doctrines, it has to be investigated to ensure that such practices have not crept, surreptitiously into the system.
“The DHQ considers these allegations too grievous to be associated with Nigerian troops, considering the doctrinal and operational contents of the training imparted to personnel on a continuous basis.
Olukolade assured that the investigation would be conducted notwithstanding the cases of impersonation that have pervaded the counter terrorism operations in Nigeria and many other related issues which cast doubts on the claims made in the video.
He said that the DHQ authorities view those grave allegations very seriously, more so as it borders on the integrity of the ongoing counter-terrorism operation, which must be sustained in the interest of Nigeria’s survival.
Olukolade said that the ultimate objective of Nigeria’s counter-terrorism operation is the complete cessation of the heinous and barbaric activities of the terrorists.
“It will therefore be absurd for the Nigerian Armed Forces as an institution to perpetrate such unprofessional acts in the manner and level depicted in that video as alleged by Amnesty International.
“Indeed, that level of barbarism and impunity has no place in the Nigerian military. Respect for the sanctity of life is always boldly emphasised in our doctrinal trainings.
“It must thus be reiterated that the Nigerian military is a very well organised professional body of troops whose conducts in war and peace times are guided comprehensively by law,” Olukolade stated.
He also said that Armed Forces of Nigeria is conscious of the country’s obligation to observe all rules, regulations and commitments in all activities.
Olukolade said the military recognises Amnesty International, and is committed to observe of rules of engagement and human rights in its counter terrorism operations.
The Tide recalls that Amnesty international (AI), on Monday released video footage it claimed showed soldiers slitting the throats of men accused of being members of Boko Haram.
In the video, the soldiers were aided by members of the government sponsored militia commonly known as Civilian JTF.
The bodies of the killed men were dumped into a mass grave.
Amnesty said it got the footage, which may be evidence of war crimes committed by the Nigerian military, from numerous sources during a trip to Borno State.
“This shocking new evidence is further proof of the appalling crimes being committed with abandon by all sides in the conflict. Nigerians deserve better. What does it say when members of the military carry out such unspeakable acts and capture the images on film?” said, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, Salil Shetty.
“These are not the images we expect from a government which sees itself as having a leadership role in Africa. The ghastly images are backed up by the numerous testimonies we have gathered which suggest that extrajudicial executions are, in fact, regularly carried out by the Nigerian military and CJTF,” he added.
According to Amnesty, one of the footage allegedly taken on March 14, 2014, showed what appeared to be soldiers and members of the civilian JTF using a blade to slit the throat of several detainees and dumping their bodies into an open mass grave.
“The video shows 16 young men and boys seated in a line. One by one, they are called forward and told to lie down in front of the pit. Five of them are killed in this way; the fate of the remaining detainees is not shown on video, but eyewitness accounts confirmed that nine of them had their throats cut while the others were shot to death.
“Additional footage featuring some of the same perpetrators, taken earlier that day at the same location, shows two detainees digging a grave under armed guard before the killing is carried out. One is told to lie down in front of the pit, where his legs and head are held by what seem to be CJTF members. The individual, who appears to be the commander of the group puts his right foot on the man’s side, raises his knife, kisses it and shouts “Die hard Commando” and cuts the throat of the restrained young man. All other military and CJTF shout “Yes oga [boss], kill him,” Shetty said.
Amnesty explained that witnesses confirmed that the videos were taken on March 14, 2014 the day Boko Haram fighters attacked Giwa Barracks in Maiduguri and freed its members being held in detention.
The organisation claimed that about 600 other prisoners who were set free by the Boko Haram fighters were rounded up at various locations in the town by soldiers and members of Civilian JTF and subsequently killed extra-judicially.
“The detainees in the video were rearrested by the CJTF in Giddari Polo, near the Barracks, where various sources have confirmed that a number of other recaptured detainees were shot and killed by soldiers after being handed over to the military. The military then took the corpses and the detainees to a location outside Maiduguri, near Giddari, where the executions are reported to have been carried out and recorded on camera,” a statement by AI explained.
Further evidence from the video suggests that the extra-judicial killing might have been carried out by soldiers from the Support Company of the 81 battalion of the Nigerian army.
“No buildings, roads or other infrastructure can be seen in the video but the noise of cars confirms that it is near a road. Several of the armed captors are wearing military uniforms, one of which has the words “Borno State Operation Flush” emblazoned on the front. The ID number on one of the guns is also clearly identifiable (81BN/SP/407). According to military sources, the rifle belongs to the Support Company of the 81 Battalion and it has not been reported missing.”
Similarly, AI also claimed that it uncovered evidence of mass killing in Bama, a town that has been in the centre of the insurgency. It claimed at after a “screening” exercise in a market on July 23, 2013, 35 men accused of being Boko Haram members were beaten with sticks and machetes before being taken to the nearby barrack.
On July 29, the men were brought back to their community and shot several times and their bodies dumped at different locations in the town.
“At that time everyone was aware that these people [had been] killed, [and] started running to look. We found [our relative] near Bama bridge. Plenty of people were with us. They [had] shot five of them [in that location alone]. There were five bodies including [my relative]. He had a bullet hole in his chest and no clothes, only trousers. We took the body and buried it. There is no death certificate; Bama hospital is not functioning. There is no place to complain; the town has restricted movement. Everybody left what happened to God,” a relative of one of the men told AI.
The Nigerian military has a history of human rights violation against civilians. Though this is not the first time the allegation of large-scale extrajudicial killings will be trailing the Nigerian military, this ranks among the most gruesome.
In May 2013, Human Rights Watch, HRW, alleged that the military carried out widespread raid of Baga Town destroying over 200 houses and killing more than 180 civilians. HRW called on the Nigerian government and military authorities to investigate its claim and prosecute those found culpable.
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