The National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS, Zone E stakeholders forum has spoken out against a recent airstrike by the Nigerian Air Force that hit a busy market along the Borno-Yobe border and killed many civilians.
The student body called the incident “tragic, avoidable, and unprofessional” in a statement released on Sunday. They said that the airstrike hit Jilli Market, a busy weekly trading hub, by mistake instead of the intended insurgent targets. The forum said that up to 200 people died and dozens more were hurt.
The operation was said to be part of Operation Hadin Kai, a military campaign against insurgent groups in the North-East, such as Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province.
NANS, whose secretary Zakari Hashim signed the letter, said that there had been a failure in gathering intelligence, identifying targets, and carrying out operations. They also pointed out that civilians continue to suffer the most from mistakes made by the military.
It said that these kinds of things happening over and over again make it very clear that people living in conflict-affected areas are not safe.
While comforting the families of the victims and those hurt in the attack, many of whom are getting care in hospitals in Geidam and Damaturu, it also showed support for people living in affected areas, especially in Gubio local government council and Geidam local government area.
NANS praised the work of the armed forces in fighting insurgency but stressed that protecting civilian lives must always be the top priority in all military operations.
The group asked the federal government, the defense headquarters, and the Nigerian Air Force to start their own investigation into what happened, make sure the victims get paid, and put in place better safety measures to stop this from happening again.
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