The Amnesty International on Wednesday
released the satellite images of last week’s
attack on the towns of Baga and Doron Baga by
the Boko Haram sect.
Based on its promise to investigate the scale of
the attacks, the AI had commissioned and got
the satellite data of the area from the
commercial provider, DigitalGlobe, following
initial reports of the attack.
AI, in a press release, condemned the killings,
describing the act as “the largest and most
destructive” of the Boko Haram attacks.
It said that the images contradicted with the
figure given by the Director of Defence
Information, Maj.Gen. Chris Olukolade, where he
said those killed in Baga could not be more than
150.
According to the human rights organisation, the
images together with the stories of those who
survived the attack suggested that “the final
death toll could be much higher than this figure.”
A researcher for Amnesty International in Nigeria,
Daniel Eyre, said, “These detailed images show
the devastation of catastrophic proportions in
the two towns, one of which was almost wiped
off the map in the space of four days.
“Of all Boko Haram assaults analysed by
Amnesty International, this is the largest and
most destructive yet. It represents a deliberate
attack on civilians whose homes, clinics and
schools are now burnt out and ruined.”
The human rights organisation asked the Boko
Haram sect to stop killing civilians, noting that
the deliberate destruction of lives and properties
were war crimes and crimes against humanity
which must be duly investigated.
The AI said the destruction shown in the images
confirmed the horrific testimonies that the
organisation had gathered.
It said that interviews with eyewitnesses as well
as with local government officials and local
human rights activists suggested that Boko
Haram militants shot hundreds of civilians.
A man in his 50s, narrated what happened during
the attack to Amnesty International.
He said, “They killed so many people.
I saw
maybe around 100 killed at that time in Baga. I
ran to the bush. As we were running, they were
shooting and killing.”
The witness said he hid in the bush and was
later discovered by Boko Haram fighters, who
detained him in Doron Baga for four days. Those
who fled described seeing many more corpses in
the bush.
“I don’t know how many but there were bodies
everywhere we looked,” one woman told Amnesty
International.
The statement by AI partly read, “The analysis
shows just two of the many towns and villages
that fell victims to a series of Boko Haram
attacks which began on January 3, 2015.
“The number of structures damaged or destroyed
in Doron Baga is likely to be higher than the
3,100 identified, but it proved difficult to
delineate and confirm individual structures in the
densely packed areas and under tree canopies.
“Before and after images of two neighbouring
towns, Baga (160 kilometres from Maiduguri)
and Doron Baga (also known as Doro Gowon,
was 2.5 km from Baga), taken on January 2 and
7, show the devastating effect of the attacks
which left over 3,700 structures damaged or
completely destroyed. Other nearby towns and
villages were also attacked over this period.
“In Baga, a densely populated town (that is) less
than two square kilometres in size, approximately
620 structures were damaged or completely
destroyed by fire.
“In Doron Baga, over 3,100 structures were
damaged or destroyed by fire affecting most of
the four square kilometre town.
Many of the
wooden fishing boats along the shoreline, visible
in the images taken on January 2, are no longer
present in the January 7 images tallying with eye
witnesses’ testimony that desperate residents
(that) fled by boat across Lake Chad.
The AI expressed concern that thousands of
people have fled the violence across the border
to Chad and to other parts of Nigeria, including
Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State.
It called on the Federal Government to take all
possible legal steps to restore security in the
North-East and ensure protections of civilians.
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