NAF break silence on killing of worshippers during Kaduna airstrike

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has dismissed allegations that 23 individuals were killed during an airstrike targeting bandits in Jika da Kolo Community, Giwa Local Government Area, Kaduna State, over the weekend.

Reports emerged from the community claiming that NAF “mistakenly” struck civilians, leading to the deaths of farmers and children present at the local mosque.

Abdullahi Ismail, a councillor from the area, corroborated the community’s concerns, highlighting that the region has become a danger zone due to ongoing terrorist activities. Villagers reported that the airstrike resulted in severe disfigurement of the victims’ bodies.

“We gathered body parts of 23 people who were identified by relatives, including children and they have been buried.

“Of course, Yadin Kidandan is a danger zone because it is under the control of bandits.

“But there are also innocent villagers who still live around there because they have no other place to go just like the casualties that we witnessed on Friday.

“So, we discovered that when the strike occurred, most of the people at the mosque died.

“It was a crowded place because there was a local market close to the mosque which was also affected. The incident happened around 2pm,” a survivor who craved anonymity has said.

The villagers called on the Federal and Kaduna State Governments to investigate the incident.

However, reacting to the allegation in a telephone interview on Monday, NAF’s Deputy Director, Public Relations and Information, Group Captain Kabiru Ali, said the community is not telling the truth.

According to him, before NAF troops embark on any operation, due diligence is always carried out to ensure the safety of communities.

According to him the NAF operation took place on Friday in the bush, stressing that there was no mosque in the location.

“The community is not telling the truth, there is nothing like that.

There is no how NAF will strike bandits close to town or any community.

“We usually monitor the bandits’ movements, we can take two to four days monitoring them until they enter where we think is safe for everybody, then we strike them. We don’t strike bandits anyhow,” he said.

Speaking further, Ali said, “If you look at the pictures, there is nothing like mosque close to that place.

“The place is inside the bush, so how can a mosque be inside the bush?

“Our operations have changed, before we strike, we have to scan the area. We dispatched surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft to scan the area…

“So, we normally strike them inside the bush not within the community. That is why we normally release the pictures of our operations so that people can see it.”

The NAF spokesperson, had in a statement at the weekend said the air component of Operation WHIRL PUNCH (OPWP) destroyed terrorist logistics base at Yadi Forest in Giwa LGA.

He said the operation was executed on Friday, 27 September 2024, following credible intelligence reports indicating huge presence of terrorists and their weapons cache in the Yadi Forest.

According to the statement “Intensive intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance confirmed the consistent presence of terrorists and their motorcycles at the location.”

The statement had noted that the target area initially appeared uninhabited. However, as the aircraft approached, some of the terrorists were seen emerging from under the shrubbery and running away from the area.

“Subsequently, the target was engaged, recording successful hits on the logistics facility, which was engulfed in flames with thick black smoke seen.

“Reports from independent sources, including local informants around the general area, later confirmed that the logistics base was totally destroyed and scores of terrorists were killed as a result of the attack.”