Amnesty International has called on the Nigerian government to conduct a transparent and independent investigation into alleged human rights violations and widespread insecurity in the Southeast region.
In a statement issued on Tuesday in Enugu, the international rights organisation said Nigeria’s continued failure to address the escalating violence in the Southeast had created a state of impunity, allowing both state and non-state actors to commit grave abuses without consequence.
The group’s latest report, A Decade of Impunity: Attacks and Unlawful Killings in Southeast Nigeria, details incidents of unlawful killings, torture, enforced disappearances, and arbitrary arrests allegedly carried out by security forces, paramilitary groups, and armed gangs since August 2015. According to the report, at least 1,844 people were killed between January 2021 and June 2023.
Isa Sanusi, Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, said the situation in the South-East has deteriorated sharply since the government’s clampdown on pro-Biafra protests in 2015.
“The Nigerian authorities’ brutal clampdown on pro-Biafra protests from August 2015 plunged the South-East region into an endless cycle of bloodshed, which has created a climate of fear and left many communities vulnerable,” Sanusi said. “Assassinations of prominent personalities and attacks on highways, security personnel, and facilities are chilling reminders of the region’s insecurity.”
The report, based on interviews with over 100 people — including survivors, victims’ families, civil society actors, and community leaders — also draws on research missions to Owerri, Asaba, Obosi, and Enugu conducted between April and November 2023.
Amnesty International noted that armed attacks by groups commonly referred to as “unknown gunmen” have intensified across Imo, Anambra, and neighbouring states. Between January 2019 and December 2021, more than 400 people were reportedly killed in Imo State alone. Witnesses told Amnesty that attackers frequently demanded money from communities during burials and weddings, often resorting to violence against anyone who resisted.
A survivor identified as Ebulie, who was attacked in Ihiala, Anambra State, recounted his experience: “The ‘unknown gunmen’ are armed – some come with guns, cutlasses, and machetes. If they come for an attack, anyone that blocks their way, they will kill them. It has been a terrible situation; people are scared.”
While the authorities continue to blame the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network (ESN), for most attacks, both groups deny involvement. Amnesty International observed that IPOB’s enforcement of its sit-at-home order since August 2021 has itself led to further abuses, including assaults and killings of civilians accused of defying the directive.
The organisation reported that the insecurity has severely disrupted daily life in the region, affecting education, trade, and traditional activities.
“Schools have been shut, exams disrupted, and markets closed with harsh economic consequences for communities across Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, and Imo states,” the statement noted.
Amnesty also raised concerns about the conduct of the state-backed Ebube Agu security outfit, established by Southeast governors in April 2021, accusing it of carrying out arbitrary arrests, detentions, torture, and extrajudicial killings.
The group further alleged that Nigerian military operations in the region had resulted in unlawful killings and destruction of property.
Despite the scale of the violations, Amnesty International said victims and their families have been denied justice and reparations.
“No one knows exactly the number of people killed in the South-East since August 2015. Many have been declared missing or forcibly disappeared,” Sanusi said.
“The number of high-profile killings and the consistent fear of possible attacks show how badly the authorities are failing to protect lives and property.
“Impunity for these human rights crimes continues to have a chilling effect on the enjoyment of other human rights.”
Amnesty International urged the Nigerian government to uphold its constitutional and international human rights obligations by ensuring the protection of life, liberty, and security.
“Authorities must undertake prompt, thorough, independent, impartial, transparent, and effective investigations into all allegations of violations and abuses committed by both state and non-state actors in the region,” Sanusi said.
The rights group maintained that only a credible and accountable response would end the cycle of violence and restore public confidence in state institutions across the Southeast.
