On Tuesday, a Nigerian Army soldier fatally shot a 16-year-old #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria protester named Ismail Mohammed in the Samaru community of Zaria, Kaduna State.
Major General Onyeama Nwachukwu, the Director of Army Public Relations, confirmed the incident in a statement titled “Unfortunate Death of a Protester by a Soldier in Zaria.” Nwachukwu explained that troops were responding to a distress call about hoodlums burning tires and attacking security personnel in Samaru. Upon arrival, the mob attempted to attack the soldiers, leading one to fire a warning shot that resulted in Mohammed’s death.
The soldier involved has been arrested and is undergoing interrogation.
The statement read: “On August 6, 2024, troops of the Nigerian Army received a distress call about hoodlums gathering in large numbers in Samaru, burning tires on the road, and throwing stones at security personnel. The troops mobilized and arrived at the scene to disperse the mob and enforce the state-imposed curfew. Upon arrival, the hoodlums attempted to attack the troops, prompting a soldier to fire a warning shot to scare them away, which unfortunately led to the death of 16-year-old Ismail Mohammed. The soldier involved has been arrested and is undergoing interrogation.”
“Saddened by the unfortunate incident, Chief of Army Staff Lt. Gen. Taoreed Abiodun Lagbaja has sent a high-level delegation, led by General Officer Commanding 1 Division Maj. Gen. Lander Saraso, to visit and offer condolences to the family of the deceased.
“The deceased was buried according to Islamic rites, with senior military officers of the Nigerian Army in attendance.”
Earlier on Tuesday, Inspector General of Police Kayode Egbetokun stated that the police, military, and other agencies involved in managing the #EndBadGovernance protests did not use live ammunition.
Egbetokun made this disclosure at a meeting of security agency heads in Abuja. He said, “The police, military, and other security agencies involved in managing this protest have not used excessive force. Instead, we faced attacks on security agents during the protest. According to our records, there were no shooting incidents by the police.
“The police and military did not use any live ammunition in managing these protests. Instead, we have cases where our officers were injured and are currently in critical condition.
“I dismiss the claims as fake news and wrong allegations. We didn’t use excessive force at all. We didn’t even deploy our full strength during the protests, even when they turned violent. We have water cannons we didn’t deploy and rubber bullets we didn’t use. All we used was tear gas and nothing more.”