National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Nigeria has said that it has received reports that the Joint Task Force (JTF) carried out extra-judicial killings, torture, rape and arbitrary detention in an efforts to fish out members of the Islamic sect, Boko Haram from their areas of operation.
A report credited to Reuters quoted the NHRC as saying that the violence had forced thousands of farmers to flee their land and warned that the exodus could trigger a food crisis. The NHRC was however not categorical on where and when the alleged abused took place.
“Thousands have been forcibly displaced both within Nigeria and beyond; a farming season has been lost, threatening the region with a food security crisis. These consequences threaten a foreseeable humanitarian crisis on the region,” said NHRC adding that the JTF was not giving it enough access to Baga since the onslaught began.
The commission quoted a police report saying troops who had arrived to avenge the killing of a colleague “started shooting indiscriminately at anybody in sight, including domestic animals resulting in loss of lives and massive destruction of property”.
