Army, IPOB say report on military attack on ESN camp in Abia fake

. . . IPOB accuse army of arresting innocent people, tagging them ESN operatives to execute them

Both the Nigerian Army, and the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, IPOB, have dismissed as fake, report in some sections of the media that the military attacked the camp of Eastern Security Network, ESN in Aba, killing no fewer than 16 personnel of the security outfit.

Assistant Director Army Public Relations, 14 Brigade Ohafia, Captain Iliya Dauda, told our Correspondent in Aba that there was no military operation against any ESN camp in Abia.

He rather explained that unknown gunmen attacked an Army checkpoint at Osisioma junction Aba but were repelled.

He said there were no casualties on the part of the Army but begged for more time to receive report from their men at the scene investigating and assessing the incident.

The Army Spokesman urged members of the public to disregard the said report which he insisted was a pure falsehood.

Similarly, IPOB dismissed the said report as cheap propaganda by those who planted it.

IPOB Media and Publicity Secretary Emma Powerful, in a reaction said no ESN camp was attacked in Abia.

He rather claimed that the military indiscriminately arrested innocent Igbo young men and tagged them ESN personnel and executed them to create an impression that they had inflicted casualty on ESN.

Powerful said ESN was formidable and could not be easily dislodged by the Nigerian security agencies, adding that the outfit is in the forest to get rid of terrorists.

“They gathered innocent people last night and tagged them ESN operatives. Let them tell the world which ESN camp they attacked. Nigeria soldiers in their normal ways removed some young men’s clothes and saw marks on their body, then they arrested and tagged them IPOB and ESN members”.

But in a swift response, Captain Dauda denied any involvement of the military in the allegation, saying it was concocted to whip up sentiments. He said the alleged photos of corpses in the said story were photo shops, insisting that the military did not carry out any military operation in any part of Abia.

IPOB, which explained that “mark is one of the customs in Igboland”, said: “Nigeria army must stop killing innocent people and tagging them IPOB and ESN operatives”.

Powerful said the preoccupation of ESN is to safeguard the entire Biafra land against conquest by rampaging terrorists and bandits. (Vanguard)