OWERRI, Nigeria – Amnesty International reported on Friday that at least 30 travelers were killed in an attack by gunmen in Nigeria’s southeastern Imo state. The incident has heightened concerns about ongoing violence and insecurity in the region.
The attackers, suspected to be members of the banned separatist group Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), also set over 20 vehicles and trucks on fire, according to Amnesty International.
Imo police spokesperson Henry Okoye confirmed the attack, which occurred in the early hours of Thursday, but did not provide a specific number of fatalities. He stated that one of the assailants was killed by the police.
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According to a police statement, the gunmen, operating in three groups, barricaded the highway around 0400 GMT, fired shots, and then set vehicles ablaze. Security forces are currently conducting a full-scale search operation in the surrounding areas to locate the suspects.
IPOB is campaigning for the secession of southeastern Nigeria, where the majority of the population belongs to the Igbo ethnic group. The Nigerian government has designated IPOB as a terrorist organization. The Biafra region experienced a civil war in the late 1960s, resulting in over 1 million deaths.
The attack occurred on the same day as President Bola Tinubu’s visit to the region and during the week that IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu appeared in federal court to face terrorism charges.
Amnesty International has called on Nigerian authorities to investigate the attack and ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice.
