The deadly explosion took place on Tuesday night, on the borders of Nasarawa and Benue states
Dozens of herders and passers-by were killed and many others injured in north-central Nigeria in an explosion that authorities said on Wednesday was a terrorist act, caused by a “bomb”, but a herders union official said it was caused by an army airstrike.
The deadly explosion took place on Tuesday night, on the borders of Nasarawa and Benue states.
In Nigeria, at least 54 people have been killed and many others injured in a bomb explosion at a village in central Nasarawa regionhttps://t.co/88MXq9YAr7
— Radio Pakistan (@RadioPakistan) January 26, 2023
A spokesman for the National Cattlemen’s Union of Nigeria, Tasiu Suleman, said a group of Fulani herdsmen were transporting cattle to Nasarawa from Benue, where they had been seized by authorities for violating grazing laws, when the explosion occurred.
“At least 54 people were killed instantly. The injured were countless,” added Mr. Suleman.
A group of 27 herders reported killed and several others injured in what police called a bomb explosion in central Nigeria https://t.co/7g396morjG
— TRT World (@trtworld) January 25, 2023
North-central Nigeria, also known as the Middle Belt, has been a hotbed of tension for about a century between pastoralists, who are often Muslim, and farmers, many of whom are Christian. Although conflicts are usually over pasture and access to water, they often take on tribal and religious dimensions. Conflicts have been exacerbated by Nigeria’s population boom and climate change.
The governor in Nasarawa state, Abdullahi Sule, did not give a casualty count, but told reporters that the deaths were caused by a bomb. It did not say who was believed to have planted it, but said it was working with security services to ensure “de-escalation” of the deadly incident.
According to a spokesman for the governor, there was a mass burial of the victims earlier yesterday.
More than 50 herdsmen died in a bomb explosion in central Nigeria, many people were injured#Nigeria #BombBlast https://t.co/Tl4BuOg97Y
— Dainik Jagran (@JagranNews) January 26, 2023
Earlier, police in the state said the death toll from the “bomb” blast was 27, but warned that there were also “many injured” and that “the death toll could rise.” He added that an investigation is being conducted into the case.
For his part, a representative of a breeders’ organization spoke of a blow by the Nigerian army.
“Air raid”;
“It was an airstrike,” said Lawal Dano, who also belongs to the national cattle breeders’ union, Miyetti Allah.
“We know that only the army has airplanes (…). We call for an in-depth investigation and for the necessary punishments to be imposed on those who were behind this” blow, he added.
A spokesman for the Nigerian Air Force did not respond when AFP tried to reach him for comment.
At least 27 pastors died and several were injured this Wednesday after the explosion of a “bomb” in the center of Nigeria, in a region devastated by ethnic and religious tensions, according to the police. https://t.co/D393qct7OY
— NMás (@nmas) January 26, 2023
In the past, there have been many military strikes involving civilian casualties, especially in northern Nigeria, where the armed forces are at odds with jihadists and criminal gangs.
In September 2021, an aerial bombardment accidentally hit a village in Yobe state, killing at least nine civilians. The Air Force had explained that the mistake was made during a pursuit of jihadists.
In January 2017, at least 112 people were killed when a plane hit a camp for those displaced by jihadist violence in Rann, a town near the border with Cameroon.
In a report released six months later, the military attributed the fatal error to “a lack of proper marking in the area.”
Insecurity in Nigeria is a central issue in the campaign ahead of the presidential elections to be held at the end of February, in which, by virtue of the Constitution, the outgoing head of state, Muhammadu Buhari, General H.E. who was elected in 2015 and re-elected in 2019, will not be running.
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