Airstrike Kills 10 Villagers in Sokoto

A military airstrike hit two villages in Sokoto on Wednesday and claimed the lives of 10 civilians, locals and community leaders said.

Residents said the incident, which occurred around 7am at Gidan Sama and Rumtuwa communities in Silame Local Government Area, also left many other people injured.

The locals said the fighter jet was targeting Lakurawa terrorists in the areas, but in the process, dropped explosives on some innocent people.

However, the military, in a statement yesterday said the airstrike was carefully organised and the real culprits targeted.

A resident of one of the affected communities in Sokoto, who gave his name as Malam Yahaya, told our correspondent yesterday that the two villages were located close to Surame forest which had been identified as a hideout of Lakurawa terrorists and bandits.

Governor Ahmed Aliyu of Sokoto State, who visited the villages where the incidents happened, condoled with the victims of the airstrike.

He promised to set up a committee to investigate the incident in order to avert future reoccurrence.

“I visited the families of the victims…I am devastated,” the governor said in Hausa.

“It wasn’t a deliberate act by the security operatives. They were actually targeting the invading terrorists. They succeeded in neutralising them during the first and the second attempts of the operation. It was the third operation that went awry."

“And as Muslims, we should accept what happened in good faith. I participated in the funeral prayers for the deceased; may their souls rest in peace,” the governor said.