At least 16 (sixteen) Nigerian soldiers were killed in Delta State this weekend as they tried to intervene in clashes between two communities, Okuama and Okoloba, in Bomadi Local Government Area.
The soldiers deployed to maintain peace, were “surrounded by some community youths and killed,” according to Defense Headquarters spokesman Brigadier General Tukur Gusau.
Fourteen bodies of the deceased military personnel have so far been recovered in the early hours of Saturday with some mutilated. Three of them were found floating by a river bank.
The casualties included the commanding officer, two majors, one captain, and twelve soldiers. The soldiers were drafted from 181 Amphibious Battalion of the Nigerian Army in Bomadi to respond to a distress call as youths of the two communities embroiled in deadly fight.
Reports from local sources say the two communities have in recent weeks often fought over land ownership resulting in several fatalities. One person was reportedly abducted during the conflict, with the Nigerian military unable to secure his release.
In response to the attack, Army Headquarters say an investigation has been initiated, but reports describe sporadic shootings and burning of houses in the Okuoma community perhaps as a reprisal by the military.
President Bola Tinubu described the attack on the military personnel as “unconscionable crime” and vowed that “The cowardly offenders responsible for this heinous crime will not go unpunished“.
Nigerian soldiers have often come under lethal attack, particularly in the northern region of Nigeria where Islamist terrorists and bandits have held sway for over a decade now.
Nigerian security situation appears to have overwhelmed the civil police force, compelling the army to confront internal security operations across the country and even resolving intercommunal conflicts, but these often come with allegations of disproportionate force by the army.
In the Niger Delta region, conflicts of this nature are all too familiar, revolving around land disputes or demands for compensations for oil spills or oil asset protection contracts from energy companies.
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