SOKOTO: FG to investigate military airstrike – Defence Minister

This information was shared in a statement yesterday by Ahmad Aliyu, the Press Secretary to the Sokoto State Governor.

He noted that the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, made this announcement during a condolence visit to Governor Aliyu in Sokoto.

Matawalle described the events in the two villages as tragic and assured that a thorough investigation would determine the circumstances surrounding the incident. He expressed hope that justice would be served in the matter.

“Mr. President is concerned about this unfortunate incident and asked me to extend his condolences to you,” Matawalle stated.

He also mentioned that military airstrikes sometimes hit unintended targets due to inaccurate information received during operations.

The minister noted that security reports indicated that the area affected by the bombing was under the control of the Lakurawa bandits.

In response, Governor Aliyu urged the military to enhance their intelligence gathering and surveillance efforts to prevent future errors in targeting.

He lauded the military and other security agencies for their dedication to ensuring the safety of the state and thanked President Bola Tinubu for his concern regarding the accidental bombing in the two villages.

Meanwhile, the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) attributed the deaths of approximately ten individuals in Sokoto to what they termed a “secondary explosion.” Major General Edward Buba, the Director of Defence Media Operations, clarified that the deaths and injuries were caused by secondary explosions rather than the airstrikes themselves.

“I mentioned secondary explosions because one of the targets was a logistics base for the terrorists in the community, which included weapon caches and supplies,” he explained during a briefing at the DHQ in Abuja yesterday .

“When the munition strikes, it can lead to secondary explosions that scatter debris, resulting in the reported deaths. The ten individuals were not directly hit by the airstrikes.”

He added that the primary targets of the airstrikes were members of the Lakurawa terrorist group, who were “burned beyond recognition.”

Buba confirmed that the military had verified that the strikes targeted the terrorist group.

“We ensured that the individuals at that location were indeed terrorists—the Lakurawa group—by utilizing human intelligence for confirmation. Once verified, we conducted a synchronized operation with the Air Force and ground forces,” he said.

“The Air Force executed precision strikes using accurate munitions. After the operation, the ground forces inspected the site and confirmed that the strikes successfully hit the intended target.”