Chief of Defence Staff General Christopher Musa has denied allegations that the army carried out a reprisal attack on Okuoma, a community in Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State, where 16 soldiers were killed last week.
This followed reports that men in military uniform ransacked and burned homes in the troubled community after youths killed a commanding officer, two majors, one captain and 12 soldiers sent there to resolve a land dispute.
“No reprisals by the army. We are searching for the murderers and their weapon cache,” Musa said in a text message to Reuters.
The Defence Headquarters in a statement on Saturday said Musa had “directed the immediate investigation and arrest of those involved in the heinous crime.”
The statement added that “So far, a few arrests have been made while steps are in place to unravel the motive behind the attack.”
President Bola Tinubu also said he has given the military full authority to hunt down those responsible for killing the soldiers, which he described as an “unconscionable crime against the Nigerian people”.
