An military drone strike by accident hit a village in northwestern Nigeria, killing and wounding civilians celebrating a Muslim competition, native authorities, the army and a resident mentioned on Monday.

Nigeria’s armed forces usually depend on air strikes of their battle towards so-called bandit militias within the northwest and northeast of the nation, the place jihadists have been waging a 14-year battle.

The military didn’t present particulars or a deathtoll for the strike late Sunday in Tudun Biri village in Kaduna State, however different officers reported fatalities and one villager mentioned 30 folks have been killed.

“Muslim faithful observing Maulud were mistakenly killed and many others injured following a military drone attack targeting terrorists and bandits,” Kaduna State governor Uba Sani mentioned. He mentioned he has referred to as for an investigation.

Many of the victims have been ladies and kids, resident Hassan Ma’aruf instructed AFP by phone, sharing photos he mentioned confirmed the our bodies.

AFP couldn’t instantly affirm the authenticity of the pictures.

Dozens of wounded have been taken to a educating hospital within the state capital Kaduna, native state safety commissioner Samuel Aruwan mentioned following a closed-door assembly with military officers and group leaders.

He mentioned the assault left “several citizens dead and others injured” however didn’t present a toll.

According to the military, it was a routine mission towards militants that “inadvertently affected members of the community,” he mentioned.

“The Maulud celebration was taking place in the village last night when the gathering was bombed at around 9:00 pm,” mentioned Ma’aruf, the resident.

“We have so far identified 30 dead victims, mostly women and children.”

Militia gangs, identified regionally as bandits, have lengthy terrorised elements of northwest Nigeria, working from bases deep in forests and raiding villages to loot and kidnap residents for ransom.

In the northeast, jihadists have been pushed again from the territory they held on the peak of the battle, although they continie to combat on.

More than 40,000 folks have been killed and two million displaced since 2009.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has made tackling insecurity a precedence since coming to workplace in May, as he seeks to encourage overseas funding in Africa’s most populous nation.

Nigerian army bombing raids have prompted civilian casualties prior to now.

At least 20 fishermen have been killed and a number of other injured in a September 2021 assault in Kwatar Daban Masara on Lake Chad within the northeast, when the army mistook them for militants.

In January 2017, a minimum of 112 folks have been killed when a fighter jet struck a camp housing 40,000 folks displaced by jihadist violence within the city of Rann close to the border with Cameroon.

The Nigerian army blamed “lack of appropriate marking of the area” in a report issued six months later.

In July 2019, a minimum of 13 civilians have been killed when a fighter jet struck Gajiganna village in Borno state, because it tried to hit jihadists who have been fleeing following an assault on a close-by base.

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