Zamfara State was once again thrown into mourning on Sunday as a Nigerian military airstrike reportedly misfired and killed no fewer than 20 members of a local vigilante group in Garin Mani, a community in Maru Local Government Area.
The tragic incident, which occurred amid heightened insecurity in the state, happened shortly after suspected bandits launched a deadly raid on the village, killing several residents and abducting over 50 farmers working on their fields.
Eyewitnesses recounted how the gunmen stormed the village around midday on motorcycles, shooting sporadically and causing chaos.
In response, local vigilantes mobilised to pursue the attackers.
However, a military jet dispatched to the area allegedly mistook the vigilantes for bandits and opened fire on them.
“We were pursuing the bandits when we saw the fighter jet approaching,” a survivor told BBC Hausa.
“It flew very low and started bombing us. Some of us survived by pretending to be dead. When the jet left, we fled to safety.”
A resident, who preferred to remain anonymous, expressed shock at the incident and criticised what he described as a lack of coordination between the military and local security groups.
“We understand it was an unfortunate mistake, but the military should acknowledge it and reach out to the victims’ families,” he said, adding that the bandits had threatened to return.
As of the time of filing this report, the Defence Headquarters had yet to issue any official statement on the airstrike.
This is not the first time such an error has occurred. In January, a similar strike in Tungar Kara, also in Zamfara, killed 16 people, including vigilantes.
Likewise, in December 2024, 10 residents of Gidan Bisa in Sokoto State lost their lives to a misdirected military air raid.
Security experts and community leaders are calling for more precise intelligence gathering and better communication between the military and local security outfits to prevent further tragedies.
Zamfara has remained one of Nigeria’s most volatile states, plagued by frequent attacks from armed groups, despite ongoing military operations.
The bereaved families, meanwhile, are demanding justice and compensation, even as fear lingers over the possibility of another bandit invasion.
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