The Indigenous People of Biafra has condemned the attacks and killings going on in Imo State. The group accused the Nigerian military and Ebubeagu security outfit of being behind the attacks.
It alleged military personnel had gone from house to house searching and killing innocent citizens just because they were deemed to be pro-Biafran agitators.
In a statement on Wednesday, the group’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, said the activities of the military and Ebubeagu outfit were being financed by politicians and their collaborators.
Powerful said that Obowo and Orlu residents were facing hard times, claiming that the security agencies especially the military mapped out those communities for total destruction.
He said, “Our people are under severe attack and torture anywhere they are seen. We are dying every day and night and the world looked the other way.
“They should stop feeding lies to the public, Nigeria’s joint security forces, especially the Army and police did not clash with unknown gunmen, ESN or civilians, instead, soldiers invaded Orlu and Obowo LGAs and its environs, burnt 17 innocent citizens alive and destroyed properties.”
The group, therefore, called on the international community, Amnesty International, and human rights watch organisations across the world to take note and prevail on the Federal Government and its security agencies to leave the Biafran territory.
It said IPOB members were not terrorists as its members were present in over 100 countries without being treated as criminals.
It claimed that the people living in Orlu and its environs were under siege and total pressure to leave their ancestral lands because of the Federal Government and its security agencies.
Powerful said soldiers were busy killing innocent citizens simply because they were suspected to be IPOB members without confirming that.
The statement read in parts, “It is no longer news that the Nigeria Army, in collaboration with Ebubeagu militia, are burning down people’s properties and now they have metamorphosed into burning human beings alive in Obowo and other communities in Biafra land.
“Two days ago, they burnt 17 people alive in Orlu Local Government Area and its environs with many houses and properties of innocent citizens destroyed completely.
“The world should come and rescue Biafrans because they are facing difficulties in the hands of the Federal Government at this time.
“We need help from the international community to rescue us by separating us from Nigeria.
“The Army is now going from house to house searching and killing innocent citizens just because they are Biafrans. They should stop murdering our brothers and sisters.
“Terrorists have continued to kill innocent Nigerians, mostly Christians, and non-Muslims, in the North but no security agency has ever moved into those theatres of war to kill innocent citizens. Is it because we are Biafrans? There is a genocide going on now in Biafra land by Nigeria security agencies. The world must come to our rescue now.”
Copyright PUNCH.
All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.
Contact: [email protected]
