Images expose army abuse in Nigeria

Satellite images of the northern Nigerian town of Baga proves that thousands of homes were destroyed during a battle that killed hundreds last month. Human rights activists are calling for a government investigation in the military abuse of power.

woman with 4month old baby burned to death

A mother was burnt alive with her baby. Nigeria's President Goodluck Jonathan promised on Wednesday to punish any soldier found guilty of misconduct during a deadly massacre on a suspected Boko Haram hideout.
Scores of houses were destroyed in the fishing village on the shores of Lake Chad raided by troops from Nigeria, Niger and Chad searching for Boko Haram gunmen, and there were 22 fresh graves, a Reuters reporter who visited said.

Reports that close to 200 people may have died in one of the most violent clashes in Nigeria.

Islamic scholar Madu Ibrahim said he was sitting in the courtyard of his thatched home when Nigerian soldiers came and set fire to it. Soon afterwards explosions went off and there was automatic gunfire from inside his neighbour's house.

"The soldiers told me to get out so I ran into the bush," he said, recounting the raid on April 16 on Baga.

For five days he hid, scavenging fruits in mangrove swamps before "returning to see what's left of Baga," he said, as he gestured towards the blackened husk of his mud-brick house.

"Many people died, including women and children," he said, adding that he had buried six of his neighbours.

In a rare statement admitting the possibility of abuses by his forces, Jonathan said: "Where any kind of misconduct is established, the federal government will not hesitate in ensuring that due sanctions are enforced and that justice is done."

Soldiers are seldom prosecuted for alleged abuses in the north, which rights groups say include summary executions and spraying people's homes with bullets.

Nigerian authorities argue civilians are killed in the crossfire because militants use them as human shields.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Wednesday satellite images revealed "massive destruction of civilian property" in Baga, undermining the army's claim that only 30 houses were destroyed.

There were 2,275 destroyed buildings, the watchdog said, urging Nigeria to investigate claims by community leaders that more than 180 died -- the military maintains a toll of 37.

"The glaring discrepancies between the facts on the ground and statements by senior military officials raise concerns that they tried to cover up military abuses," it said.

Nigeria Human Rights Commission head Anselm Odinkalu on Tuesday opened an investigation into what happened at Baga. Do you know about any Military abuse of power in Nigeria? Report it now