NHRC Demands NAF Explain Civilian Deaths in Military Airstrikes

Nigeria’s National Human Rights Commission has formally demanded that the Nigerian Air Force explain the repeated killing of civilians in military airstrikes, calling the pattern “deeply troubling” and warning that operations against insurgents and bandits must comply with human rights and humanitarian law standards.

The NHRC’s intervention marks a formal escalation of domestic scrutiny over the NAF’s conduct — one that goes beyond media criticism and NGO statements to put Nigeria’s own government human rights body on record demanding accountability from the military.

What the NHRC Said

In a statement issued through the Commission’s Director of Corporate Affairs and External Linkages, Fatimah Agwai Mohammed, the NHRC’s Executive Secretary Tony Ojukwu (SAN) laid out the body’s position plainly. The Commission acknowledged that fighting insurgency, banditry, and other security threats is a legitimate state responsibility. But it drew a clear line.

“Such operations must, at all times, be conducted in strict compliance with the Constitution, international human rights obligations, and the rules of international humanitarian law,” Ojukwu stated, according to The Nation. “The recurrent incidents of civilian casualties in military airstrikes are deeply troubling and incompatible with established human rights and humanitarian law standards.”

The NHRC is calling on the Nigerian Air Force to explain how these civilian deaths are occurring and what steps are being taken to prevent them. It stopped short of calling for an immediate suspension of operations, but the demand for public explanation is itself a significant pressure point.

A New Institutional Voice

What makes this development distinct from previous criticism is who is speaking. The NHRC is not an opposition group, a foreign body, or an advocacy NGO — it is a federal government commission. Its decision to publicly challenge the NAF puts the military in the uncomfortable position of being called out by an institution within Nigeria’s own human rights architecture.

Earlier, the United Nations had raised alarm over a separate airstrike in Zamfara’s Tumfa area that killed civilians. That UN probe drew government defensiveness. The NHRC’s domestic call may be harder to dismiss.

Accountability Under Pressure

Multiple airstrikes across the northwest and north-central regions have been linked to civilian casualties in recent months. In each case, military spokespeople have either denied civilian deaths or described victims as “bandits.” Rights groups, including Amnesty International, have contested those characterisations and pushed for independent investigations.

The NHRC’s intervention puts additional pressure on the federal government to either order the NAF to publicly account for civilian casualties or risk having the Commission escalate its demands through formal mechanisms available to it under Nigerian law.

Whether the Air Force responds — and how — will be closely watched by human rights monitors both inside and outside Nigeria.

Sources: Premium Times, The Nation, Leadership