February 7, 2026 l Dalena Reporters
A joint Nigerian military task force deployed to quell a communal conflict in the Amasiri community of Afikpo Local Government Area, Ebonyi State, has been accused by civil society activists and residents of perpetrating extrajudicial killings, arson and destruction of livelihoods, sparking fresh human-rights concerns in southeastern Nigeria.
In a damning statement released on Saturday, February 7, the civil rights group Advocates for Good Governance described the operations of forces deployed since January 30, 2026, as “state-sponsored terror” rather than peacekeeping, alleging that the security personnel abandoned their mandate and instead inflicted violence on the very communities they were meant to protect.
According to residents and the group’s complaint, the task force’s actions followed outbreak of communal strife in the area, but rather than stabilising the situation, the operatives are accused of imposing a draconian 20-hour curfew and then embarking on widespread arson attacks, burning residential buildings and farm produce crop stockpiles worth hundreds of millions of naira that many families depend on for food and income.
“The Amasiri community has witnessed a descent into state-sponsored terror,” the statement said, lamenting that women, children and elderly residents are now displaced and stranded in bushlands, their homes destroyed and unable to access essential services.
Amid reports of civilian deaths and the shooting of peaceful female protesters, villagers told Sahara Reporters that they view the military deployment as punitive, with many claiming that the destruction of their farms and food stores risks triggering an impending food crisis.
Civil society advocates also criticised the silence of the Ebonyi State Government under Governor Francis Nwifuru, arguing that the absence of leadership response amid widespread suffering signals tacit approval of the security operation’s excesses.
The group is demanding an immediate, independent investigation by both the state government and the National Human Rights Commission, the withdrawal or overhaul of the task force’s operational guidelines, and unfettered humanitarian access to displaced persons and media.