Nigerian cops kill 3, burn houses
2003-04-02 22:50
Kadawa, Nigeria - Nigerian police attacked a village and burned down dozens of houses, killing three people too infirm to escape, witnesses told AFP among the ruins of their mud-brick homes.
A police commander confirmed a raid had been launched on Monday on the village of Kadawa after local youths protesting the escape of a murderer burned a nearby police station, but he denied any homes were burned.
"All I know is that my men went to the village to arrest those who burned down a police station and 20 people have been arrested," said Nuraini Asholabi, deputy police commissioner in Kano State.
But in Kadawa, a 7 000-strong farming community 50km south of the city of Kano, an AFP correspondent found a scene of devastation, with scores of homes burnt out or damaged.
"The whole village relies on farming and now that all our crops have been burned we don't know how we can survive before the next harvest," said Hamza Mansir, a 29-year-old farmer, pointing to his burnt home.
"We have lost all we had, nothing is left apart from a few things we are able to find in the ashes," he said.
Nura Mukaila, 32, said: "Three people, a blind man, an old man and a sick teenager were killed in the raid because they could not leave their houses."
Asholabi denied any knowledge of deaths.
Brutal revenge
"For somebody to say that three people were killed and houses were burnt is not to the knowledge of the police," he said. "The police did not even fire a single shot in the village."
Nigerian security forces have a history of brutal revenge raids, and in October last year the country's top policeman, Inspector General Tafa Balogun, called on police to use extreme methods to defend their bases.
"All I want to hear is that as they were trying to burn a police station or barracks that no fewer than a certain number, say 45, were killed in the process," he told reporters.
Tensions are rising in Nigeria less than two weeks before the start of the first elections since the 1999 end of civilian rule, and violent unrest has erupted in many areas of the country.
While Monday's attack did not appear to have any political motive, it will increase fears that the Nigerian security forces are finding it hard to maintain order at a key time for Africa's most populous nation.
Witnesses said that seven police jeeps and a truck invaded the village and ordered people out of their homes before setting them ablaze.
Shouts of triumph
"It was around 01:00 and I was sleeping in my room when some policemen came in and asked me to leave but I refused," said Uba Dan-Duko, a 60-year-old farmer.
"The police left but soon I heard shouts of triumph from outside and I rushed out to see what it was about and I realised my house was on fire," he said, rummaging through the debris of his mud house.
Villagers said trouble had started when a gang of armed robbers killed the head of a local vigilante group.
"There was an armed robbery in the house of Alhaji Ma'aru two weeks ago in which the chief vigilante of the village was killed by the robbers," Maikudi Musa told AFP.
"The robbers who escaped were overheard by a vigilante rejoicing over their exploit in a bar and he reported them to the police who later arrested the ring leader.
"But on Saturday the police said the robber had escaped. The people of the village did not believe the story and were very bitter," Musa said.
The young men of the village marched in protest to the police station from where the robber escaped at Garun-Mallam, the local government headquarters, where they were tear-gassed by the police.
"The youths were infuriated by the police's reaction and they sacked the police station and burnt it down", Musa said.
On Wednesday the police station could be seen, burnt out and abandoned. - Sapa-AFP
- SAPA