Thousands killed, hundreds forcibly disappeared in two years in South-East – Amnesty Int’l

South east map

…1,844 people killed between January 2021 and June 2023
….Gunmen killed over 400 people in Imo state between 2019 and 2021
….Hundreds of people arbitrarily detained and forcibly disappeared
The Nigerian authorities’ persistent failure to address the security crisis in the country’s South-East region has created a free-for-all reign of impunity in which numerous state and non-state actors have committed serious human rights violations and killed at least 1,844 people between January 2021 and June 2023, Amnesty International said today.

The report, A Decade of Impunity: Attacks and Unlawful Killings in Southeast Nigeria, documents unlawful killings, torture and other ill-treatment, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests and displacement at the hands of rampaging gunmen, state-backed paramilitary outfits, vigilantes, criminal gangs and cults in the South-East region between January 2021 and December 2024.

“The Nigerian authorities’ brutal clampdown on pro-Biafra protests from August 2015 plunged the South-East region into an endless cycle of bloodshed, which has created a climate of fear and left many communities vulnerable. Assassinations of prominent personalities and attacks on highways, security personnel and facilities are chilling reminders of the region’s insecurity,” said Isa Sanusi, Director of Amnesty International Nigeria.

“The government must stop turning a blind eye to the unlawful killings, arbitrary arrests and detention, torture, enforced disappearances, and destruction of properties in the South-East region. Authorities must live up to their constitutional and international human rights obligations including by ensuring all suspected perpetrators are brought to justice in fair trial, no matter who they are, and that victims and their families have access to justice and effective remedies.”

The report is based on interviews with 100 people, including survivors, victims’ relatives, civil society members, lawyers, traditional leaders, and religious leaders. Amnesty International also conducted research missions to Owerri in Imo state, Asaba in Delta state, Obosi in Anambra state, and Enugu in Enugu state between April 2023 to November 2023.