At least 72 people were killed after a military air strike hit Tumfa market in Zurmi LGA on Sunday, AFP reported, citing a community leader.
Garba Ibrahim Mashema told AFP the death toll was hard to confirm because both residents and armed men use the market. “Everybody, residents and bandits, goes to the market. People are at the mercy of the bandits,” he said.
A local source said some of those killed included young girls selling food in the market.
Amnesty International put the toll at over 100, saying dozens of injured were being treated and that one village buried 80 people.
The group called for an investigation into the strike and said civilians in conflict areas in northern Nigeria have “borne the brunt of suffering far too often.”
“Military aircrafts bombed the weekly market, at a point it was full of people and without warning. The scene was chaotic,” Amnesty said. Injured victims were evacuated to hospitals in Zurmi, Shinkafa and Gusau.
The military denied reports of civilian casualties in Zamfara. Defence spokesperson Michael Onoja told AFP the claims were “not true.”
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The Zamfara strike occurred the same day another air operation targeting bandits in Niger state reportedly killed 13 civilians. The military said the Niger incident would be investigated but also denied civilian deaths there.
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