Over 1800 People Including Monarch Killed In Nigeria’s South-East Within Two Years — Report

More than 1800 people, including a monarch, have lost their lives in Nigeria’s South-East region in just over two years, according to new data released by Amnesty International.

The global human rights organisation said at least 1844 people were killed between January 2021 and June 2023 in attacks by so-called unknown gunmen, local militias, and state-backed security outfits.

Amnesty’s findings, drawn from victim interviews, police reports, and media verification, covered Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo states. 

The AI said the killings reflect what it described as “a decade of impunity” in the region.

In one incident, gunmen stormed the palace of traditional ruler HRH Eze Ignatius Asor in Obudu Agwa community of Imo State on 14 November 2022. 

Witnesses said about 30 armed men arrived in a convoy of Sienna buses, opened fire in the palace courtyard, and executed the monarch and two visiting chiefs in cold blood.

The attackers allegedly fired more than 16 bullets into the ruler’s body before fleeing. No arrests have been made since.

Amnesty traced the violence to 2019, when armed factions began enforcing sit-at-home orders linked to the banned Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB). 

While IPOB denied civilian killings, the organisation said splinter cells now operate independently, targeting police stations, markets, and public officials.

Imo State recorded the highest number of deaths, exceeding 400 between 2019 and 2021, followed by Anambra and Ebonyi states. The report noted over 100 additional fatalities since December 2022, mostly from midnight raids, assassinations and reprisal attacks.

Amnesty described the attackers’ methods as calculated and terroristic, noting that traditional institutions have been decimated as gunmen loot livestock, burn homes, and extort residents.

The report also accused the Ebube Agu security network, created by South-East governors in 2021, of arbitrary arrests, torture and summary executions. “The lack of accountability emboldens perpetrators,” Amnesty said. “Communities now live between the terror of the gunmen and the fear of those meant to protect them.”

The Defence Headquarters denied the allegations, insisting that military operations are lawful and intelligence-driven. However, local groups and media continue to document reports of extrajudicial killings and property destruction.

Amnesty’s report, A Decade of Impunity, urged the Nigerian government to establish an independent judicial panel to investigate killings, disappearances and torture cases, warning, “Security must not come at the cost of human rights.”