The Igbo-Biafra Nationalists, IBN, on Monday urged the Igbo leaders to take up cases of alleged murder of Igbo youths in the South East region, by suspected security operatives to the International Criminal Court, ICC.
The convener of the IBN, Mazi Uche Mefor, made this known to newsmen in Owerri, while reacting to a video they claimed was in circulation on the social media of uniformed men.
According to the statement, “Our attention has been drawn to the video currently in circulation showing the criminal and rogue Nigerian military personnel engaging in the mass execution of Igbo youths in the South-East. This despicable act is both alarming and condemnable, shedding light on the grave injustices occurring in the region.
“We hereby equally condemn, in the strongest possible terms, the reported unprovoked killing of Nigerian military personnel in the South-East on the 30th of May 2024, Biafra Remembrance Day—a day set aside to honour the heroes and heroines of Biafra. These acts were reportedly carried out by some rogue elements masquerading as the Biafra army, some of whom, under the leadership of Simon Ekpa, have boldly claimed responsibility. This situation begs the question: why is the Nigerian army, and indeed the Nigerian government, not pursuing these culprits but instead resorting to mass murder and crimes against humanity against the civilian Igbo population?
“The Igbo-Biafra Nationalists and the Indigenous People of Igbo Nation for Self-Determination unequivocally condemn these heinous crimes by the Nigerian army. We demand an immediate cessation of the continued unlawful mass murder, enforced disappearances, extra-judicial killings, and incarcerations of vulnerable, unarmed innocent Igbo youths who represent the future of the Igbo nation. We urge the South-East governors, state house of assembly members, Igbo intellectuals and professionals, and the Senators and Federal House of Representatives members to unite forthwith. It is imperative they institute robust legal action through the offices of their state attorneys general against the Nigerian state and the rank and file of the Nigerian armed forces with command responsibilities, to identify and hold accountable the criminals among them responsible for these egregious acts.”
“Furthermore, we call on them to identify and apprehend the criminal elements who, under the guise of Biafra, are committing mass murder against the Igbo civilian population. While some of these elements have taken responsibility for killing soldiers, which we equally condemn in every ramification, it is evident that the Nigerian government possesses the resources and capacity to apprehend those responsible for the deaths of military personnel. However, instead of focusing on these culprits, they have used this opportunity to unleash maximum violence on innocent Igbo communities, furthering the Nigerian state’s campaign of genocide to exterminate the Igbo race.
“This situation constitutes a crime against humanity, engaging the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC). The South-East political representatives must awaken from their slumber and send Article 15 communication to the ICC, detailing these crimes under Article 7(1)(a) of the Rome Statute. This communication should target criminal elements both from the Biafra side and those with command responsibilities within the Nigerian state, ranging from the office of the President to the rank and file of the Nigerian armed forces. The Igbo civilian population has become the victim of both rogue Biafra agitators and criminal elements within the Nigerian government establishment,” he said.
