On Sunday night, troops of the Nigerian Army mistakenly bombed the Tudun Biri community in the Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State. GODWIN ISENYO writes on the experiences of the survivors and the apologies tendered by the Army
The Tudun Biri community in the Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State dreads bandits and terrorists. The residents have been cooperating with the military to flush out the hoodlums from their area. Never did they believe that they would be victims of bombs meant to pound terrorists.
In a tragic turn of events, the Nigerian Army accidentally bombed the community leaving 120 people dead. The deceased villagers were given a mass burial on Monday. On Tuesday, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Taoreed Lagbaja, during a visit to the community, apologised for the tragic event.
Those who survived the air strike recounted their tragic experiences to our correspondent.
A resident, Jemila Ahmed, was lucky to survive the airstrikes, but she said how two of her children died was better imagined than seen.
Ahmed who is undergoing treatments at the Kaduna State University-owned Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital, Kaduna told The PUNCH that she never believed such a fate would befall her.
She said, “I was just standing when I just heard loud sounds of bombs. I fell down. I was motionless as my two legs were badly affected.”
She said she lost two of her children whom she identified as Mohammed aged 7 years and Abubakar, 5, to the bombing.
She added that the two children could only be identified through their clothes as the bombs dismembered them beyond recognition.
“I lost two children to the attack, I identified them through their clothes. Mohammed was seven-year-old and his brother, Abubakar, was five-year-old. Their bodies were dismembered beyond recognition. It was only through their trousers and shirts that we recognised,” she said.
Ahmed is receiving treatment in the hospital with one of her children who survived the bombing.
Another survivor, 60-year-old Sulaiman Umar told our correspondent on his hospital bed that he was baffled “when we were referred to as bandits.”
He noted that the villagers gathered to commemorate the Maulud celebration, adding that some of the survivors slept in the forest till daybreak.
Confirming that the bandits had once visited the community, Umar insisted that “we are not bandits but residents of Tudun Biri celebrating Maulud when we were attacked.”
He said, “Bandits do come to our village but we always report strange faces to our district head. We don’t fraternise with them at all.
“There was a time we discovered one informant in our village, we disowned him and handed him over to the Army. We have nothing to do with bandits.
“I was eating that night when we were bombed. Many people died. We can hardly identify our children; some with their intestines out. They bombed us twice. After the first round of bombs, they came back to bomb us again.
“I ran into a deep forest where I slept till daybreak. We covered the dead with leaves. We separated the males from the females and covered them with leaves.”
We lost 32 in our family – Zainab Alhassan
On her part, 35-year-old Zainab Alhassan told The PUNCH that her family lost no fewer than 32 members to the attack on Sunday night.
She said as worshippers scampered for safety many thought that they were being attacked by bandits, adding that she did not know how she escaped from the scene, Alhassan said she lost about 32 members of her family.
She said, “We are celebrating Maulud when the airstrike occurred, killing many people. We never saw the jet that dropped the bomb. It was those who came from afar that saw the aircraft that dropped the bomb.
“We were only in a celebration mode. We thought those that attacked us were bandits. I do not know how I escaped. We lost 32 people in our family.
“There is another family that lost about 15 people to the attack too. Many people died. Even those that are rescuing people were also killed by the second bomb.
“About 82 corpses were counted and yesterday night, another victim died. There are families that don’t even know where members of their families are now. They are missing.”
COAS apologises
But the Chief of Army Staff, Lagbaja on Tuesday sympathised and prayed for the victims of the accidental bombing.
According to a statement by the Director of the Army Public Relations, Brig-Gen. Onyema Nwachukwu , Lagbaja, during a condolence visit to the community, also tendered apologies and pledged succour to the strike victims as well as the community.
Lagbaja noted that in the recent past, Tudun Biri and adjoining villages were infested with bandits, who terrorised the communities until troops of the Nigerian Army started conducting operations to sanitize the area and make it habitable.
The COAS stated that he was in Tudun Biri to personally witness the site of the mishap and apologise on behalf of the Nigerian Army to the District Head and people of the community, as well as the government and the entire people of Kaduna State.
He said, “The troops were carrying out aerial patrols when they observed a group of people and wrongly analysed and misinterpreted their pattern of activities to be similar to that of the bandits, before the strike.’’
He disclosed that he had ordered a thorough inquiry into the incident to ascertain and identify areas of deficiency that led to the disaster. He added that the outcome of the investigation would guide the Army “in meticulously and professionally seeking and applying lasting solutions to identified lapses and deficiencies in both the human and Artificial Intelligence variables that will forestall future recurrence.’’
The District Head of Rigasa, Aminu Idris in his remarks, said despite the enormity of the incident, the Nigerian Army showed integrity in accepting responsibility for the air strike and urged its leadership to intervene in bringing succour to hospitalised victims and the community for their losses.
He maintained that the community comprised both Muslims and Christians and that the victims were of both religions, contrary to earlier insinuation that the community was solely Islamic.
Lagbaja also commiserated with the Chairman Jama’atu Nasril Islam, Kaduna State, Prof Shafiu Abdullahi, and other clerics.
The Chief of Army Staff visited affected victims at the Barua Dikko Teaching Hospital Anguwan Rimi, Kaduna, where he prayed for their speedy recovery.
Lagbaja made a donation of N10m to the survivors of the bomb attack.
Some of the survivors said they thought they were being attacked by terrorists.
