Army refutes claims soldiers killed women protesters in Adamawa

The Nigerian Army has denied reports alleging that soldiers attached to the 23 Brigade Commander, Brig. Gen. Amechi Agwu, opened fire on women protesting in Lamurde, Yola, on Monday, resulting in multiple deaths.

Several media outlets had reported that troops escorting the Brigade Commander shot and killed at least seven women during a protest at Rigange Junction amid rising tensions sparked by earlier attacks on communities in Lamurde Local Government Area.

However, in a statement released on Tuesday, the Acting Assistant Director of Army Public Relations, Captain Olusegun Abidoye, dismissed the claims as false and an attempt to tarnish the image of the military.

“The attention of Headquarters 23 Brigade Nigerian Army has been drawn to a baseless report by Sahara Reporters and some other online media. The report levelled unfounded and false allegations against the Brigade and its Commander,” the statement said.

Abidoye clarified that neither the Brigade Commander nor his escorts were present at the scene. He added that the commander was attending a virtual operational briefing with the Chief of Army Staff at the time of the alleged shooting.

According to the Army, the violence stemmed from a land dispute between the Chobo and Bachama communities. Troops were deployed to restore order when they were attacked by armed militia suspected to be loyal to one of the warring sides.

“In the course of operations, a militia group suspected to be fighting for the Chobo community attacked the troops. The troops, being a professional and combat-ready force, engaged the gunmen, neutralising three and forcing the others to flee,” Abidoye said.

The statement added that after the troops moved to secure the Lamurde Local Government Secretariat following a distress call, a group of women blocked their access to the building.

Abidoye stressed that the women who died were victims of stray bullets fired by local militias, not soldiers. “Without equivocation, the casualties were caused by the unprofessional handling of automatic weapons by militias who lack the training to manage such weapons,” he said.

The Army assured residents that normalcy has since been restored and urged the public to disregard what it described as misleading reports.