Civilians “mistakenly” killed in Nigerian military drone strike

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday called for an investigation into the weekend attack that struck a gathering in the northern village of Tudun Biri. At least 85 people died and more than 65 others were injured, according to the regional emergency management agency. The people killed were celebrating a Muslim holiday on Sunday night, said local governor Uba Sani. The strike targeted “terrorists and bandits,” but an unknown number of civilians were mistakenly killed and injured, he said on Monday.

Why was the strike carried out? Nigeria’s military has carried out regular strikes in recent years on extremist and rebel targets throughout the country’s northwest and central regions. The country has also been battling Islamist insurgents in the northeast for years. Terrorists are known to embed themselves in civilian groups, said Nigerian Defense Headquarters spokesman Major General Edward Buba. 

Dig deeper: Listen to Onize Ohikere’s report on The WORLD and Everything in It podcast about religious freedom worldwide.