Death toll rises after pro-Biafra protests

At least 10 pro-Biafra supporters were killed during protests on Monday as they marked the anniversary of the 1967 declaration of their breakaway republic, according to Nigerian police, AFP news agency reports.

A police spokesman in Anambra state told AFP that five bodies had been recovered in Onitsha town, adding to the five already confirmed dead from the violence in Asaba (see earlier entry), which lies just across the other side of the River Niger.

PHOTO: Emeka Ojukwu led the attempt to create a separate state in the south-east

Two police officers were also killed in Asaba.

Police say that protesters from the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) movement opened fire on them first, forcing them to retaliate. 

IPOB denies this and says that least 35 members of the group were killed in Onitsha alone on Monday.

Readers have rallied to the defence of Biafra protesters after Nigeria’s police chief accused them of carrying out “premeditated attacks” and vowed to disarm them.

The Nigeria police chief ordered the immediate disarmament of members from a secessionist group accused of involvement in violent protests on Monday, a police statement said.

Solomon Arase has also ordered the arrest of anyone from the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) found in possession of a weapon, the statement added.

He accused IPOB activists of carrying out “premeditated attacks” on police officers, and said they would face justice for the killings. 

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