Separatists kill 11 in Nigeria’s south-east, army says

The Nigerian army said a separatist militia killed 11 people in the country’s southeastern Abia state.

Five soldiers and six civilians were killed in the attack by separatists in a series of raids to commemorate an anniversary of their short lived self-proclaimed Biafara republic, AP reported.

The separatist militia, called the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has waged guerrilla warfare for decades in a conflict that claimed at least 1 million lives.

However, this main separatist group in the restive southeast region denied responsibility and blamed ‘criminals’ for the deadly attack.

The Nigerian army vowed to retaliate. “We would bring overwhelming military pressure on the group to ensure their total defeat,” defense spokesman Maj. Gen. Edward Buba said in a statement.

Biafara declared independence from Nigeria and existed from 1967 until 1970. Its territory consisted of the former Eastern Region of Nigeria, predominantly inhabited by the Igbo ethnic group.

The Nigerian army fought a three-year war to reclaim the territory in 1970. But the scars of civil war still exist and different armed groups still stage attacks on Nigerian forces there.