One year after the air strike that killed 40 people in Rukubi in Doma area of Nasarawa State, Amnesty International Nigeria has said neither justice nor accountability had been served.
According to Isa Sanusi, Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, Air strikes with high numbers of unlawful killings have become the latest in a long list of gross human rights violations perpetrated by the Nigerian military.
Recall that in December 2022, the Nigerian Air Force air strike killed 64 people in Mutumji village in Zamfara state.
Also, on 3 December 2023 in Tudun Biri, another air strike killed more than 120 people.,
Following these air strikes, the Nigerian authorities took responsibility and tendered public apologies.
However, Sanusi, in a statement by Michael Christian, Amnesty International Nigeria Media and Communications Assistant, said nothing had come of the authorities' commitment to probing the incident.
Amnesty International
Sanusi said: "One year on and the Nigerian authorities have failed to ensure justice and accountability for the air strike that killed 40 people in Rukubi.
"This is simply too long a wait for the victims and their families, whose lives have been devastated by this atrocity, as justice delayed, is justice denied.
"The use of air strikes for law enforcement is unlawful and represents a reckless use of deadly force.
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"The authorities' consistent failure to hold the military to account for this disregard for human lives is only encouraging further such strikes, putting people living in rural areas, already beset by conflicts, in greater danger.
"The Nigerian authorities must give clear directives to the military to always prioritise and respect human rights while carrying out all types of security operations.
"President Bola Tinubu's administration must carry out an independent, impartial, and effective investigation into the air strike on Rukubi, as well as the many others that have resulted in unlawful killings.
"Those suspected of responsibility should be brought to justice in fair trials, including those with individual and command responsibilities of soldiers and senior military commanders," Amnesty International Nigeria Director added.
