Nigeria: Over 1,800 killed in South-East amid worsening security crisis –Amnesty International

By: Lauretta Fagbohun, Abeokuta.

At least 1,844 people killed between January 2021 and June 2023
Gunmen killed more than 400 people in Imo State between 2019 and 2021
Hundreds arbitrarily detained or forcibly disappeared

The Nigerian authorities’ persistent failure to address the escalating security crisis in the South East has fuelled a reign of impunity in which state and non state actors have committed serious human rights violations and taken thousands of lives, Amnesty International said today.

In a new report, A Decade of Impunity: Attacks and Unlawful Killings in Southeast Nigeria, the organisation documents unlawful killings, torture, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests, and mass displacement carried out between January 2021 and December 2024 by armed groups, state backed paramilitary outfits, vigilantes, criminal gangs, cults, and security forces.

“The Nigerian authorities’ brutal clampdown on pro-Biafra protests from August 2015 plunged the South East into an endless cycle of bloodshed, creating a climate of fear and leaving communities vulnerable,” said Isa Sanusi, Director of Amnesty International Nigeria.

“The government must stop turning a blind eye to unlawful killings, arbitrary arrests, torture, enforced disappearances, and destruction of property. Authorities must ensure all suspected perpetrators face justice in fair trials and that victims and their families receive justice and effective remedies.”

The report is based on 100 interviews with survivors, relatives of victims, civil society actors, lawyers, traditional and religious leaders, as well as research missions to Owerri (Imo State), Asaba (Delta State), Obosi (Anambra State), and Enugu (Enugu State) between April and November 2023.

Gunmen killed more than 400 people in Imo State between January 2019 and December 2021, attacking residents, police stations, and vigilante offices. These raids frequently triggered deadly reprisals, causing mass casualties and displacement.

Residents told Amnesty International that gunmen often demand money at community events such as burials and weddings, attacking and burning homes if resisted.

“The ‘unknown gunmen’ are armed some with guns, cutlasses, and machetes. If they come for an attack, anyone that blocks their way will be killed. It has been a terrible situation; people are scared.”

Authorities blame the pro-Biafra group IPOB (Indigenous People of Biafra) and its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network (ESN), for most attacks. IPOB/ESN deny involvement, but enforcement of their 9 August 2021 “sit at home” order has resulted in beatings and killings of those defying the order, as well as school closures, disrupted exams, and severe economic hardship across Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, and Imo States.

Ongoing insecurity has severely impacted rights to life, physical integrity, security, liberty, and freedom of movement. Many residents have avoided their hometowns for years, while traditional marriages and burials now often take place outside the region due to fear of attack.

Armed groups have taken control of communities, ousting traditional rulers and displacing residents in areas such as Agwa and Izombe (Oguta LGA, Imo State) and Lilu (Ihiala LGA, Anambra State). Cult violence, fuelled by the drug trade, also thrives unchecked in Anambra towns including Obosi, Awka, Onitsha, Ogidi, and Umuoji.

The Ebube Agu paramilitary force, created by South East governors in April 2021, has been implicated in harassment of government critics, arbitrary arrests, torture, extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances, and destruction of homes.

Military and police operations have also involved unlawful killings, arbitrary arrests and detention, torture, enforced disappearances, and destruction of property. Despite the scale of abuses, justice and reparations remain out of reach for victims.

“No one knows exactly how many have been killed in the South-East since August 2015,” said Isa Sanusi. “Many remain missing or forcibly disappeared. The persistence of high-profile killings and constant fear of sudden attacks show how badly authorities are failing to protect lives and ensure law and order. Impunity for these crimes is crippling the enjoyment of basic human rights.”

Sanusi called for urgent action, including independent, impartial, and transparent investigations into all violations by state and non-state actors, and full compliance with Nigeria’s constitutional and international obligations to protect the rights to life, liberty, and security.

Amnesty International has documented human rights violations in the South-East since August 2015 by state forces, non-state armed groups, criminal gangs, and state-backed militias. This report builds on findings published on 24 November 2016, which detailed a brutal crackdown on pro-Biafra activists by Nigerian security forces. Those findings were shared with South-East governors and security agencies, but no responses were received.