Zamfara Airstrike: State Lauds NAF, Mourns Casualties As APC Demand Probe
By Anne Osemekeh, Abuja
The Zamfara state government has commended the Nigerian military’s efforts in the renewed onslaught against bandits in the state.
Spokesperson of the governor, Sulaiman Idris, in a statement on Sunday, said the Nigerian Air Force, in a successful airstrike over the weekend, decisively targeted bandits attacking villages in Zurmi and Maradun local government areas.
TheFact Daily reports that an airstrike in Kakindawa village, Maradun Local Government Area of the state targeting terrorists in the area reportedly killed several people, including 16 vigilantes on Saturday evening.
Eyewitness said the incident occurred when an aircraft dropped a bomb on the vigilantes who had mobilised to assist neighbours in Tungar Kara village, under attack by bandits rustling livestock and attempting abductions. The bandits had already fled into the forest when the bomb was dropped, taking the lives of the vigilantes.
The incident has sparked outrage, even as the spokesperson for Operation Fansan Yamma, Lieutenant Colonel Abubakar Abdullahi, stated that an investigation into the incident was underway, with further details to be provided.
The government also commiserated with the families of those affected by the airstrike.
In its reaction to the incident, the All Progressives Congress (APC) Zamfara stare chapter consoled with the families of the victims over the “unfortunate” event.
It called on the “authorities concerned to thoroughly investigate the unfortunate accidental airstrike with a view of preventing a recurrence”.
