Camps bombed by Air Force not ours —IPOB

Outlawed Igbo separatist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has denied running two camps that were bombed by the Nigeria Air Force (NAF) in Anambra and Imo States on Tuesday.

The Air Force had, in a statement on Wednesday by its spokesperson, Edward Gabkwet, said airstrikes conducted by the Force had destroyed the two camps belonging to IPOB and its militia wing, the Eastern Security Network (ESN).

The statement from Gabkwet added that the airstrikes were conducted following intelligence reports that IPOB members were planning to unleash terror on people in the area.

But while denying the allegations in a statement on Thursday, the Biafra agitators said the Air Force had lied as the group had nothing to do with the said camps.

The statement which was released by IPOB’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, insisted that the group is not a terror gang and as such, had no need to maintain such camps.

“We debunk the claims by the Nigerian Air Force of bombing IPOB’s ESN camps at Osumoghu in Nnewi South LGA of Anambra State and Osuihiteukwa in Orsu LGA, Imo State,” Powerful said.

“We are bold to say that ESN does not have camps in any of the bombed locations.

“The Nigeria Air Force should stop lying and blackmailing this peaceful IPOB with the so-called bombing of IPOB’s ESN camps.

Read also: NAF destroys IPOB’s alleged hideouts in Anambra, Imo

“For public information, IPOB doesn’t operate camps in those locations. IPOB has offices in Biafra land and in the diaspora. We are not criminals or terrorists otherwise civilized countries would not give us the freedom to gather in their countries.

“What IPOB has is the Eastern Security Network (ESN), whose primary duty is to secure our bushes and protect our people.

“The general public should ignore and disregard the rants of the Nigeria DSS-sponsored criminal and agent provocateur in Finland called Simon Ekpa and his gangsters who are always impersonating ESN to demonize IPOB and Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

“The Nigeria Air Force must call those criminal camps they bombed by their names and not mention ESN or IPOB.

“As much as we detest the criminals impersonating IPOB and ESN in their violent activities in the name of the Biafra struggle, we nevertheless condemn the bombing of any part of Biafra Land by the Nigeria Air Force.

“If the Nigeria Air Force has functioning fighter jets to bomb criminal hideouts in the rainforest of the Southeast, why then have they not bombed terrorists and bandits who are in the open in the desert lands of the North?”

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