The Nigerian Army, on Wednesday, dismissed allegations of mass killing by its troops in the South-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria.
The claims of mass killing were made by Simon Ekpa, a self-acclaimed leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
The Director, Army Public Relations, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu, debunked this in a statement, saying, contrary to Ekpa’s claims, which has gone viral on social media, the Nigerian Army has conducted a thorough investigation and found no evidence to support the allegations.
General Nwachukwu added that the troops in the video footage are personnel of the Nigerian Navy, not the Army, and were engaged in a routine test firing of a weapon system.
Ekpa had raised an alarm in a viral video, alleging that troops of the Nigerian Army are carrying out mass killing of innocent Igbos and dumping them in a river.
General Nwachukwu also clarified that the incident took place in the South-West zone, not the South East, and that there was no evidence of individuals being shot at or killed in the river.
Last Thursday, the Army said non-state actors in IPOB’s armed wing, the Eastern Security Network (ESN), gruesomely murdered five soldiers in Abia State.
The non-state actors were said to be enforcing a sit-at-home order across the South-East when they killed the soldiers.
Both the President of Ohaneze Ndi-Igbo, Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, and the detained leader of IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu, distanced themselves from the soldiers’ killing.
The military has vowed to retaliate the action.