Tragedy in Northeast Nigeria as Airstrike Hits Civilian Market, Reportedly Kills 200 People - Reuters Reports

At least 200 people are feared to have been killed after Nigerian military jets bombed a village market while targeting Islamist militants in the country’s northeast on Saturday night, according to a local councillor and residents who spoke on Sunday.

In response to reports of civilian casualties, the Nigerian Air Force said it had activated its Civilian Harm Accident and Investigation Cell to immediately travel to the site and conduct a fact-finding mission into the incident.

According to Reuters, the Air Force had earlier stated that its operation targeted Boko Haram militants in the Jilli axis of Borno State.

Authorities in neighbouring Yobe State later confirmed that an airstrike had taken place near a busy market where traders and shoppers were gathered at the time.

“Some people from Geidam Local Government Area, which borders Gubio in Borno State, had gone to the Jilli weekly market and were affected,” said Brigadier General Dahiru Abdulsalam, military adviser to the Yobe State government. He did not provide further details.

The strike reportedly occurred in a village in Yobe State near the border with Borno, a region that has long been at the centre of an insurgency that has killed thousands and displaced millions.

Lawan Zanna Nur Geidam, a councillor and traditional leader in Yobe’s Geidam district, said the wounded were being transported to hospitals across both Yobe and Borno states.

“It’s a very devastating incident at Jilli Market. As I speak to you, more than 200 people have lost their lives in the airstrike,” he said during a telephone interview.

Three additional residents, along with an official from an international humanitarian organisation, corroborated both the attack and the estimated death toll.

The Yobe State Emergency Management Agency said it had received initial reports of the incident, which resulted in casualties among traders, and had since activated its emergency response mechanisms.

Ahmed Ali, a 43-year-old trader dealing in medical supplies at the market, recounted being injured in the blast. “I was terrified and tried to run, but a friend pulled me down and we both lay on the ground,” he said from his hospital bed.