A drone strike by the Nigerian army, intended for rebels, accidentally killed at least 85 civilians, French news agency AFP reported on Tuesday. It happened on December 3 during the celebration of an Islamic holiday in a village in Kaduna state. According to AFP, it is one of the deadliest military attacks ever in the country.
The Nigerian emergency services let us know on Facebook that 85 bodies have already been buried, but other victims are still being searched for. The dead include children, women, men and the elderly. In addition, about 66 injured people are being helped in the local hospital.
The Nigerian Ministry of Information let us know at that President Bola Tinubu finds the accident “very unfortunate, disturbing and painful.” He has launched a “thorough and complete” investigation into how this could have happened. According to Al Jazeera From February 2014 to September 2022, at least fourteen incidents occurred in which the Nigerian military accidentally bombed civilians.
The Governor of Kaduna State said against Al Jazeera that the drone “targeted terrorists and bandits.” The Nigerian army is carrying out more frequent air strikes in the fight against Boko Haram jihadists and criminal gangs in the northwest and northeast of the country.
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