While reacting to the recent dastardly massacre on some security forces in Shiroro, Niger State that saw to the kidnap of some Chinese expatriates, the Nigerian Army has openly decried the posting of some of the images of the soldiers who were killed by terrorists in the Ajata-Aboki, Gurmana ward in Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State on Thursday.
The gunmen who have been identified as bandits had attacked and laid siege to the mining site in the area while killing over thirty Nigerian soldiers, seven mobile policemen and six civilians, just as scores were wounded and several others were abducted in one of many sieges in the Nigerian army.
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The Army in a press statement signed by Brigadier General, Onyema Nwachukwu, Director Army Public Relations urged Nigerians to show some restrain in posting such images. He argued that those who lost their breadwinners deserved to be properly notified of the incident and not to get such information through the media.
Nwachukwu said,” some clips of the incident have surfaced online and we wish to encourage well meaning Nigerians to exercise some restraint in posting images of such occurrence, mindful that our brothers and sisters who may have lost their breadwinners deserve to be properly notified and not to get such information via the media. We mention this, mindful of the inalienable rights of citizens to use the social media which is respected”.
The Director Army Public Relations explained that the soldiers paid the supreme price on their way to respond to a distress call of an attack on a mining site in the area, when they ran into an ambush staged by the criminal elements.
According to him, “the troops of the Nigerian Army (NA) deployed in Shiroro general area responded to a distress call of bandits attack on people operating a mining site. Enroute the location, the troops ran into an ambush staged by the criminal elements. Sadly, a number of personnel paid the supreme price in fierce firefight that ensued.”
The statement also stated that the location had been reinforced and troops were on the trail of the criminals with some already neutralized, adding, “the GOC 1 Division has moved to the location to take charge of the follow up operations”.