Amnesty International Says ‘Mistaken Air Force Attack on Nigerian Market’ Left Scores Dead

By Reporter

A Nigerian Air Force strike targeting rebels hit a local market in northeastern Nigeria, killing over 100 residents and injuring many others, a rights group and local media reported on Sunday. Officials confirmed a misfire but did not provide details.

Amnesty International is alleging that survivors confirmed that at least 100 people were killed in the airstrike on a village in Yobe state near the border with Borno state, the epicenter of the militant insurgency ravaging the region for over a decade.

The Yobe State Government confirmed in a statement that a Nigerian military strike was targeting a stronghold of the Boko Haram militant group in the area and that “some people … who went to the Jilli weekly market were affected.

“We are in touch with people that are there, we spoke with the hospital. We spoke with the person in charge of casualties and we spoke with the victims,” Isa Sanusi, Amnesty International Nigeria director, told The Associated Press.

However, the Air Force has reported that the Air Component of Operation HADIN KAI had ‘successfully’ executed precision follow-up mop-up air strikes on identified terrorist locations within the Jilli axis of Borno State.

The spokesperson of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF), Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, disclosed this on Sunday.

Ejodame said the mission was conducted on Saturday, April 11, as part of a “coordinated air-ground integration operation” with the Nigerian Army, following an earlier engagement that “effectively” decimated terrorist positions in the area.

He said the mission came amid intensified efforts to track and neutralise terrorist elements responsible for recent attacks on security forces within the North East frontlines.

The NAF’s spokesperson said the follow-on air strikes were specifically aimed at fleeing remnants and regrouping cells seeking to exploit the difficult terrain.

He said the air component acted on credible intelligence received through close coordination with relevant stakeholders and validated by the appropriate operational command before it struck.

“By sustaining pressure through immediate mop-up strikes after the initial coordinated assault, the Air Component has reinforced ongoing efforts to secure lives, protect property, and stabilise vulnerable areas across Borno State and the wider North-East theatre,” Ejodame said.

“The operation further consolidated gains already achieved by friendly forces.

“It also reflects the Nigerian Air Force’s unwavering resolve to maintain persistent surveillance, precision interdiction, and rapid response actions in support of national counter-terrorism objectives, while reassuring citizens of the Armed Forces’ steadfast commitment to restoring lasting peace and security,” he added.