[23], In January1967, the military leaders Gowon,Chukwuemeka Ojukwuand senior police officials of each region met inAburi, Ghana and agreed on a less centralized union of regions. Ojukwu flees his enclave. Photographs of the military Obasanjo, Jallo, Bissalo, Gowon. In September 1966,approximately 30,000 Igbo were killed in the north, and some Northerners were killed in backlashes in eastern cities. Shortly thereafter, federal troops entered Enugu, the provisional capital of Biafra, and penetrated the Igbo heartland. Tens of thousands were killed while about a million fled to what was then known as the Eastern Region. A decade later in 1964 and during the Western political crisis[18]divided the Western Region asLadoke Akintolaclashed withObafemi Awolowo. "The Nigerians who were pursuing us were trained soldiers. Military Wiki is a FANDOM Lifestyle Community. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. The next day, two federal army officers were publicly executed for killing four Igbo civilians in Benin. 2023 The Sun Nigeria All Right Reserved. He was one of the few Nigerian Military Officers of his time like Yakubu Gowon (who later became Head of State) and Alexander Madiebo (who later became the General Officer Commanding (G.O.C.) Okororie wasnt affected by the monetary policy as she had taken out all her money from the bank at the start of the war and, thus, had Nigerian pounds to convert to the new Nigerian currency, the naira. appreciated. From: 56 Brigade. [a] Biafra received aid from non-state actors, including Joint Church Aid, Holy Ghost Fathers of Ireland,[2] and under their direction Caritas International,[3] and U.S. Catholic Relief Services. Widespread reports of fraud tarnished the elections legitimacy. . The predominant language of Biafra wasIgbo. Photo by Chika Oduah. In July 1966 northern officers staged a countercoup, Aguiyi-Ironsi was assassinated, and Lieut. Though peaceful, the protesters have been routinely attacked by the Nigerian police and army, with large numbers of people reportedly killed. Check your inbox to be the first to know the hottest news. Not everything captured could be brought across the river but that which was brought back included 100,000 rounds of ammunition, 50 bicycles, 3 battery charging machines, 4 wireless sets, 2 typewriters, 300 rounds of 105mm shells, 2 anti-aircraft guns and ammunition, a few weapons and fairly large quantities of food and clothing. Estimates of the number of dead from fighting, disease and starvation during the 30-month civil war are estimated at between. The final Biafran collapse began on December 24, 1969, when federal troops launched a significant offensive. And he had the distinction of having held out against all odds for 15 months in the face of furious onslaughts by federal troops. "We thought we were magicians," said 76-year-old Mr Ago. An early institution created by the Biafran government was the Bank of Biafra, accomplished under Decree No. The government's policy of "no victor, no vanquished" may have led to a lack of official reflection, but many Nigerians of Igbo origin grew up on stories from people who lived through the war. Beatles singer John Lennon returned his MBE in a protest over Britains foreign policy, which included Biafra and the Vietnam war. A military administration was set up under Maj. Gen. Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi, but his plan to abolish the regions and impose a unitary government met with anti-Igbo riots in the north. The coup eventually took place in July, 1966. . Oguta town served as Biafra's major supply line for arms and relief material during the war. The currency of Biafra had been the Nigerian pound until the Bank of Biafra started printing out its own notes, the Biafran pound. He died in November 2011 and was given a full military burial in a ceremony attended by then Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, some other African leaders and members of the diplomatic corps. Subsequently, the Biafran Commander-in-Chief posted him to Army Headquarters as Chief of Operations under Madiebo, away from field operations. [34]There was no official support for the Biafran Army by any other nation throughout the war, although arms were clandestinely acquired. Conflicts were endemic, as regional leaders protected their privileges; the south complained of northern domination, and the north feared that the southern elite was bent on capturing power. The bomb fell on my older brothers house, Okororie said of the missile that missed its target, an adjacent military encampment. No gun, no bomb, no nothing.". [3] A special guerrilla unit, the Biafran Organization of Freedom Fighters, was established: designed to emulate the Viet Cong, they targeted Nigerian supply lines, forcing them to shift resources to internal security efforts. [19]In January1966, the situation reached a breaking point. He has since been released and has been rearrested and released more than five times. Gen. Murtala Ramat Mohammed, initiated many changes during his brief time in office: he began the process of moving the federal capital to Abuja, addressed the issue of government inefficiency, and initiated the process for a return to civilian control. Nigeria became an independent country on October 1, 1960. A young officer orders an attack during the Biafra conflict in Nigeria in 1969. [51]Since August1999, protests have erupted in cities across Nigerias south-east. Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was its first federal prime ministerhe had held that position since 1957and Nnamdi Azikiwe became its president of the Senate, which was a largely ceremonial role. Most of the officers were students or educated civilians drafted into the Biafran Army and given a few days of training and poor military gear. In September 1969, Biafra acquired four ex-Armee de l'Air North American T-6Gs, which were flown to Biafra the following month, with another T-6 lost on the ferry flight. The rank insignia of non-commissioned officers and enlisted personnel. "I think now that Ojukwu thought he was Jesus Christ. He was 90 years old. An estimated 2,000 demonstrators presented the French ambassador with a letter protesting French assistance to Biafra. [32] Biafra attempted to finance the war through foreign exchange. Njoku, a lawyer is a connoisseur of Biafran War Literature. [65]A report byAmnesty Internationalbetween August2015 and August2016, at least 150 pro-Biafran activists overall were killed by Nigerian security forces, with 60 people shot in a period of two days in connection with events marking Biafran Remembrance Day. We were not. NEPA gave me back my job, said Adizua, adding that the national electricity company also paid his full salary for the years he was away. Mr Ago looked forward to these visits, and joined the crowd who gathered at the university's Freedom Square. Mr Oragwu wishes that the Igbo had paid less attention to the scramble for power at the centre, and instead distinguished their region by advancing the technological gains of the war. It was headquartered in Kidney Island,Port Harcourt, and commanded by Winifred Anuku. Evelyn Okororie had just returned home from the market in Nigerias Midwest region, when neighbors informed her that an airstrike had killed her mother, her niece and three of her children. Colonel Chris Ugokwe commanded the Biafran 52 Brigade which was stationed in the Owerri sector. At the beginning of the war Biafra had 3,000soldiers, but at the end of the war, the soldiers totalled 30,000. We completely cleared Ikot Ekpene and up to a minimum radius of six miles.. Recently, Anthony Okoro Eze who retired from the Nigerian Army as a Colonel passed on at the age of 80 years. In Nigeria and its surrounding region, long-standing regional stressesethnic competitiveness, educational inequality, and economic imbalance being the most prominentagain came to the fore in a controversial census during 196263. These were people who were doing all sorts of things and the war forced them out of their positions.". Initially, the final offensive was neutralised by Biafran troops. Info: Defence Headquarters, Commander-in-Chief. [64], According to the South-East Based Coalition of Human Rights Organizations, security forces under the directive of the federal government have killed 80members of the Indigenous People of Biafra and their supporters between 30August 2015 and 9February 2016 in arenewed clampdownon the campaign. As a Biafran soldier, he commanded the Biafran 63 Brigade in the Owerri sector. I wasnt angry towards the Nigerian soldiers. This number grew as the war progressed, ultimately reaching 30,000. [50]MASSOB accuses Nigeria of marginalising Biafran people. He retired as a full Colonel of the Nigerian Army in the 1980s. No gun, no bomb, no nothing. On 15 January 1970, the conflict officially ended. Biafra War - GlobalSecurity.org VideoThe secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure, LGBT troops take love for Eurovision to front line, Why an Indian comedian is challenging fake news rules. 2023 BBC. But now I know that heroes fight like Biafrans. He also remembers the last year of the war when his unit was continuously on the move, fleeing the advancing Nigerian army. Charles W. Thomas defined the locations of islands in the Bight of Biafra as between the parallels of longitude 5 and 9 East and latitude 4 North and 2 South. In May the Eastern regions consultative assembly authorized Ojukwu to establish a sovereign republic, while, at the same time, the federal military government promulgated a decree dividing the four regions into 12 states, including 6 in the north and 3 in the east, in an attempt to break the power of the regions. Those killed included Ahmadu Bello, a revered leader in the north. He talks about his experience with international humanitarian law and the ICRC. Wounded Biafran soldiers are transported across a river in June 1968. He left for exile in Ivory Coast and spent many years in the West African country before he was pardoned by Shehu Shagari, Nigerias first democratically elected president in 1982. "No Victor and No Vanquished" - Fifty Years after the Biafran War He was an ambitious young military officer but this rebellious attitude led to his arrest after a failed plotted coup. Biafran armed forces | Military Wiki | Fandom When Nigeria declared war on Biafra, some soldiers visited my house while I was away, thinking I was a Biafra informant, he told CNN. The meeting did not end. Nigerian Civil War - Wikipedia By early 1969, Biafra had assembled five MFI-9Bs in Gabon, calling them "Biafra Babies". [9], Biafra had a small improvised navy, but it never gained the success of the air force. The surrender was facilitated by the Biafran Vice President and Chief of General Staff, Major General Philip Effiong, who assumed leadership of the Republic of Biafra after the original President, Colonel Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, fled to Ivory Coast. She lost three children in the war. Three of those who were involved in the secessionist campaign have been sharing their memories. It mainly operated in theNiger River deltaand along theNiger River. Professor Boniface Obinna Okere lectures on international humanitarian law and other subjects at the University of Nigeria in Enugu. [58][59]The Nigerian Government, through its broadcasting regulators, the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigerian and Nigerian Communications Commission, has sought to clamp down on Radio Biafra with limited success. "The Last Adventurer" by Steiner, Rolf (Boston:, Little, Brown 1978), Chinese-made weapons may have come from Zambia or Tanzania (, http://www.canit.se/~griffon/aviation/text/biafra.htm, "The Douglas A/B-26 Invader - Biafran Invaders", https://web.archive.org/web/20130509094109/http://vectaris.net/id307.html, Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy, http://www.marinavasca.eu/en/ficha-otras-marinas-auxiliares.php?id=49&o=, https://books.google.fr/books?id=o50VqaPTWkoC, Pages containing cite templates with deprecated parameters, Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. [2] A soldier in the ruins of the Onitsha market after it was gutted during fighting in the city on July 16, 1968. The Nigerians who were pursuing us were trained soldiers We were drafted into the war, given two days' training. [35]A special guerrilla unit, the Biafran Organization of Freedom Fighters, was established, designed to emulate the insurrectionist guerilla forces of theViet Congin theAmerican Vietnamese War, targeting Nigerian Federal Army supply lines and forcing them to shift forces to internal security efforts. Soon the Biafran first Battalion of 58 Brigade was astride Uyo road and the second Battalion had swept through Ibibio Estate College into Ikot Ekpene town. The Biafran Armed Forces ( BAF) were the military of the secessionist state of Biafra which existed from 1967 until 1970. They have three children, Andrew, Yvette and Chukwuma who are all married with children. They were coloured green, were able to carry six 68mm anti-armour rockets under each wing using simple sights. Now in her 80s, Okororie is one of the millions of civilians who lived in what was then Biafra a secessionist state carved out from Nigerias southeast in 1967. Omissions? These aircraft flew missions until January 1970 manned by Portuguese ex-military pilots. Ogbugo Kalu - Wikipedia Madiebo reports that the second diversionary offensive planned by Eze was equally successful. [49]It has two arms of government, the BiafraGovernment in Exileand the Biafra Shadow Government. In 1945 an ethnic riot[17]flared up inJosin which Hausa-Fulani people targeted Igbo people and left many dead and wounded. "The war gave the opportunity to reject the colonial design.". The Republic of Biafra comprised over 29,848 square miles (77,310km2) of land,[1]with terrestrial borders shared withNigeriato the north and west, and withCameroonto the east. After being given formal military training in both Ghana and the United Kingdom, Kalu was short service commissioned a Second Lieutenant in November 1959. Mr Ago left the army and went in search of his family, whom he had not heard from in more than two years. Along with numerous commands, in a letter sent to him by Odumegwu Ojukwu, Kalu was made an officer of the Biafran fourteenth division with strict orders. [6], The Biafrans set up a small, yet effective air force. 6:08 AM EST, Thu January 16, 2020. [32]The bank carried out all central banking functions including the administration of foreign exchange and the management of the public debt of the Republic. During a stopover of several days in Lisbon, she heard that Biafra had surrendered. He was detained by Ojukwu until the end of the war following the fall of Uyo in 1968. Many Igbo still feel sidelined in Nigerian politics, as since the civil war no-one from the ethnic group has become president. At the outbreak of hostilities in July 1967 that marked the beginning of the Nigerian Biafran war, Aghanya was commissioned into the Biafran Army with the rank of Colonel and appointed Commanding Officer of the 44th Electrical and Mechanical Engineer Battalion Biafran Army by the then Chief of Staff Biafran Army, Brigadier Hillary Njoku. After it ended, markets, schools, homes, and lives devastated by bombs and bullets had to be rebuilt. However,Englishwas used as theofficial language. Location: Helsinki, HK 00100Email: info@enterbiafra.comPhone: +358 50 318 8631. The shortage of experienced officers was a major problem for the Biafran Army, made worse by a climate of paranoia and suspicion within as Ojukwu believed that other former Federal officers were plotting against him. The commander of the army,General Aguiyi Ironsiseized power to maintain order. It also had 2 separate brigades, the S Brigade, a Pretorian guard for General Ojukwu,[5] and the 4th Commando Brigade (trained and commanded by mercenaries). "Without us, the war would have lasted only about 30 hours," said the 85-year-old. The Nigerian Revolution and the Biafran War - Google Books After running into unexpected resistance and facing many casualties, the right Nigerian column advanced to Nsukka, which was captured on the 14th of July. This led to a divisive and bitter war from 1967 to 1970. However, it is a period Okororie says she can never forget. Estimates of the number of people who died during the Nigerian Civil War vary significantly, from 500,000 to 3,000,000. The Biafra War In Nigeria: Causes, Development, And Aftermath - Knoji . This led to months of massacres against the Igbo living in the north. The Biafran War began in July 1966, and ended in 1970 after more than a million people had been killed, mostly from starvation. The Nigerian Civil War, also known as the Biafran War, July 6, 1967 - January 13, . Some of us, our skin was getting rotten. These aircraft flew missions until January1970 and were flown byPortugueseex-military pilots. Its territory consisted of theEastern RegionofNigeria. Professor Okere is a member of the . [73][74][75], The Incorporated Trustees of Bilie Human Rights Initiative, representing the Indigenous People of Biafra, have filed a lawsuit against the Federal Government of Nigeria and Attorney General of the Federation, seeking the actualization of the sovereign state of Biafra by legal means. [6] After the surrender of Biafra, some Igbos who had fled the conflict returned to their properties but were unable to claim them back from new occupants. He was born on December 23, 1935. It was carried out by the 61 Brigade under Major Okeke. Protests were held around the world and Bruce Mayrock, a student at Columbia University, set himself on fire at the United Nations headquarters in New York to protest the war in Biafra. Nigerians in Lagos react to news of the Biafrian surrender following the announcement of a ceasefire on January 12, 1970. You must clear the enemy from Obinze in 24 hours or submit your resignation from the army.". The talks were largely unsuccessful in curbing the conflict between Biafra and Nigeria. Be the first to get hottest news from our Editor-in-Chief, Check your email and confirm your subscription. A Biafran soldier carries an elderly woman from the wreckage of her home following an artillery bombardment by the Nigerian army in June 1968. You are already subscribed to our newsletter! After returning to Nigeria, the federal government reneged on the agreement and unilaterally declared the creation of several new states including some that gerrymandered the Igbos in Biafra. Col. Aniebo was also one of the Biafran soldiers in 1967. Did you encounter any technical issues? Fifty years after the Biafran conflict, Nigeria is still battling to maintain its unity, with various groups, not just the Igbo, calling for the restructuring of Africa's most populous state. Achuzie is a prominent figure in Nigerian politics, even though he was arrested along side with some other Biafran soldiers who broadcasted their final surrender to General Olusegun Obasanjo in 1970. Enter Biafra is a channel that disseminates information about the right to self-determination of Biafrans intending to bring together revolutionary, activists, workers movements, non-governmental organisations, community-based organisations, lobby-groups under the need to pursue the struggle for the actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra and economic emancipation. The Biafran Armed Forces (BAF) were the military of the secessionist state of Biafra which existed from 1967 until 1970. "Nigeria was programmed by the British colonial authorities not to participate in production and manufacture of global technologies," he wrote in the book. In January 1966, some senior Nigerian army officers, mostly of the Igbo ethnic group, assassinated key politicians during a coup in the West African state. The point of no return was reached in January 1966, when, after the collapse of order in the west following the fraudulent election of October 1965, a group of army officers attempted to overthrow the federal government, and Balewa and two of the regional premiers were murdered. The Republic of Biafra had come to an end. Ethnic tension had simmered in Nigeria during discussions of independence, but in the mid-twentieth century, ethnic and religious riots began to occur. In September 1969, Biafra acquired four ex-Armee de l'Air North American T-6Gs, which were flown to Biafra the following month, with another T-6 lost on the ferry flight. During Nigeria's civil war, he was a young officer in the Biafran army. Weapons and equipment used by Army and militias. Soon afterwards, the Biafran battalion captured Umuabayi, together with the enemy ammunition and food dump located there. Hunger killed more Biafrans than bullets and bombs. [15], Events leading to war Some women on the trail were raped and killed by soldiers, while others died in bombing raids. It was headquartered in Kidney Island, Port Harcourt, and was commanded by Winifred Anuku. "Somewhere in the middle of the war," he said, "the Biafrans made some dramatic successes that gave us hope that we might hold the Nigerians until at least some help from outside came.". He attended Government College Umuahia from 1949 to 1955 and was in Nile and Simpson houses respectively. Gowon was able, through his own personal magnetism, to reconcile the two sides so that the former Biafran states were integrated into Nigeria once again and were not blamed for the Nigerian Civil War. Read about our approach to external linking. Remembering Nigeria's Biafra war that many prefer to forget Major General Philip Effiong, the Republic of Biafra's Vice President and Chief of General Staff, orchestrated the surrender after the original President, Colonel Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, escaped to the Ivory Coast. Federal soldiers were advancing in full force and something had to be done. "I didn't want anybody to disgrace him.". Ojukwu fled to Cte dIvoire on January 11, 1970, and a Biafran deputation formally surrendered in Lagos four days later. [9][67], Another group is the Biafra Nations Youth League (BNYL), which has its members and followers mostly in the Niger Delta and Bakassi Peninsula, the group is led by Princewill Chimezie Richard (aka. Biafra, officially theRepublic of Biafra, was a secessionist state inWest Africathat existed from May1967 to January1970 during theNigerian Civil War. The federal government, dominated by Northern Nigeria, allowed the crisis to unfold with the intention of declaring a state of emergency and placing the Western Region under martial law. 0 likes, 0 comments - GOGAN TV (@gogantv) on Instagram: "The Indigenous People of Biafra has denied the claims by the Nigerian military that they invaded ." [62][63]Self-determination is not a crime in Nigerian law. He joined the Biafran army and was assigned to the signal unit, whose responsibilities included "active intelligence and eavesdropping on the Nigerian military". Lt. Col. Odumegwu Ojukwu, left, takes the oath of office shortly after a declaration of independence and the formation of the new state of Biafra on June 10, 1967. Former Nigerian Army Officer and Chief of Staff of the defunct Biafran Army, Alexander Madiebo, is dead. With the help of other French doctors, Kouchner put Biafra in the media spotlight and called for an international response to the situation. By early 1969, Biafra had assembled five MFI-9Bs in Gabon, calling them "Biafra Babies". After he was officially pardoned by the Nigerian government, he returned in 1982, with multitudes pouring onto the streets of his home state of Anambra to welcome him. Colonel Chukwuemeka Ojukwu, the military governor of Eastern Nigeria during the Ironsi regime, became the Head of State of the Republic of Biafra and began establishing the infrastructure of a sovereign nation, including the minting of currency and establishing diplomatic relations with other nations. It was Eze that received Madiebo from Kaduna at the Ikeja Airport, Lagos at 1500 hours on the 19th of June, 1966 and drove him in his private car to see the Head of State, Major General J.T.U. Peacemaking attempts by the Organization of African Unity (now the African Union), the pope, and others were ineffective, and Biafra began gaining recognition from African states (Cte dIvoire,Gabon,Tanzania, andZambia). Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. This administration of the Nigerian federal government was widely perceived to be corrupt. The Bank of Nigeria exchanged only 30 pounds for an individual and 300 pounds for enterprises in the second half of 1968. As we ponder the suggestion to set up "regional armies", there are lessons from that campaign that need emphasis if we are to learn from history and avoid repeating its mistakes. Colonel Odumegwu Ojukwu Inspecting Newly Recruited Officers Into The Biafran Army The Nigerian civil war otherwise known as the Biafra war in 1967, broke out as a result of the decision of the Igbos to break out of Nigeria. She was teaching English and French in a secondary school in Port Harcourt in southern Nigeria when the civil war began. Ojukwu died after a brief illness at age 78 in November, 2011. He was assassinated in February 1976 during an unsuccessful coup attempt, and his top aide, Lieut. But English was more widely spoken in Biafra, so translators were needed whenever French officials visited Ojukwu. In July 1966 northern officers and army units staged a coup. The two columns were led by Colonel Shuwa and mostly northern officers. 140 Biafran Army Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images CREATIVE Collections Project #ShowUs Creative Insights Custom Content EDITORIAL VIDEO BBC Motion Gallery NBC News Archives MUSIC BLOG BROWSE PRICING BOARDS CART SIGN IN Editorial Images Images Creative Editorial Video Creative Editorial FILTERS CREATIVE EDITORIAL VIDEO All Sports New Nigerian newspaper page, 7January 1970. Timeline: Biafra War In Key Dates - Channels Television Col. (later Gen.) Yakubu Gowon came to power. The leaders of Biafran National Guard, (BNG), invites any and all Biafran Veteran United States Military officers and members who had served in any capacity within the United States Military, professional retired law enforcement officers; as well as retired seasoned armed security service officers; who are from Biafran Origin (South Eastern . Okororie recalls that she and her seven children had taken refuge in Oguta, a lakeside town near a local airport, which served as Biafras major supply line for arms and relief materials from international charities. Author of. Biafra war: Survivors relive account 50 years after Nigerian civil war The apparent domination of the political system by the North, and the chaos breaking out across the country, motivated elements within the military to consider decisive action. A group of emaciated children photographed in 1970. [44], In 2010, researchers from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and the University of Nigeria at Nsukka showed that Igbos born in Biafra during the years of the famine were of higher risk of suffering from obesity, hypertension and impaired glucose metabolism compared to controls born a short period after the famine had ended in the early 1970s. This became law in the Abandoned Properties Act (28 September 1979).