Bestialities and indignities of all kinds were visited on Biafrans in 1966. In Ikeja Barracks (Western Nigeria) Biafrans were forcibly fed on a mixture of human urine and faeces. In Northern Nigeria numerous Biafran house-wives and nursing mothers were raped before their husbands and children. Young girls were abducted from their homes, working places and schools and forced into sexual intercourse with sick, demented and leprous men.

Mr. Eric Spiff (German War correspondence Eyewitness, 1967
Again back to the topic!

Beaf:

[size=14pt]All you need is a swastika.[/size]

Until now efforts to relieve the Biafran people have been thwarted by the desire of the central government of Nigeria to pursue total and unconditional victory and by the fear of the Ibo people that surrender means wholesale atrocities and genocide. But genocide is what is taking place right now - and starvation is the grim reaper. This is not the time to stand on ceremony, or to go through channels or to observe the diplomatic niceties,  The destruction of an entire people is an immoral objective even in the most moral of wars. It can never be justified; it can never be condoned."
Mr. Richard Nixon, September 9, 1968- During the Presidential Campaign.

There has been genocide, for example on the occasion of the 1966 massacres , Two areas have suffered badly [from the fighting]. Firstly the region between the towns of Benin and Asaba where only widows and orphans remain, Federal troops having for unknown reasons massacred all the men. According to eyewitnesses (from which tribe again) of that massacre the Nigerian commander ordered the execution of every Ibo male over the age of ten years.
" Monsignor Georges (sent down on a fact-finding mission by His holiness the Pope reporting his finding in Vatican Rome
Le Monde (French Evening newspaper) April 5, 1968. ",

^^^
Carter Huh

SEFAGO:

Of course he must demonize those Africans and their tribal politics while politicking in the beautiful USA. Not surprising, Carter probably cannot locate nigeria on a map. He is just stating what they told him. I am glad he acknowledged it was an attempt by the government to pursue total and unconditional victory. Seems carter, doesn't know what genocide means  

When did Nixon become "Carter" na?
Look at our self acclaimed super intelligent being making a fool of himself (or herself?).

SEFAGO:

There has been genocide, for example on the occasion of the 1966 massacres , Two areas have suffered badly [from the fighting]. Firstly the region between the towns of Benin and Asaba where only widows and orphans remain, Federal troops having for unknown reasons massacred all the men. According to eyewitnesses [size=14pt](from which tribe again)[/size] of that massacre the Nigerian commander ordered the execution of every Ibo male over the age of ten years.
" Monsignor Georges (sent down on a fact-finding mission by His holiness the Pope reporting his finding in Vatican Rome
Le Monde (French Evening newspaper) April 5, 1968. ",

ven a half brained fool should know that Murtala Mohamed carried out that massacre

SEFAGO:

Not interested. This was one commander. Please find out the meaning of genocide. Does one horrible man symbolize his whole ethnic group?

You're the "clever" guy who thinks so; you really are funny. Read your own comments.

However, Many northerners saw the reluctance of Ironsi to prosecute the coupist and the fact that the army was giving exceptional privileges to the coupist as an indication of Ironsi's support for the killings. Consequently northern politicians and civil servants mounted pressure upon northern officers such as Mohammed to avenge the coup. In the face of provocation from the southern dominated media which repeatedly showed humiliating posters and cartoons of the slain northern politicians, on the night of July 29, 1966, northern soldiers at Abeokuta barracks mutinied, thus precipitating a counter-coup, which may very well have been in the planning stages. According to most southern sources Muhammad at first intended to use the counter-coup as a step towards the secession of northern Nigeria, but later dropped this demand when the economic difficulties of a potential Northern Nigerian State were pointed out to him by civil servants and British diplomats.

According to observers and foreign journalists, he lined up any able-bodied men he could find along a wall and had them face a firing squad. Their crime seems to have been aiding and abetting of the Biafran troops by allowing them into the midwest due their common Igbo heritage, even though the midwest was still in Nigeria. To further compound matters, there were tales of women (even some who were pregnant) being raped and then killed. Mohammed steadfastly denied these claims during the war, but conceded after the war that his troops (probably some uneducated tribalistic mallams) may have gotten carried away. He never proffered an apology, however[b].(Wetin commander go do when he is commanding crazy people)

SEFAGO:

Clapham, Christopher (1985). Third World Politics: An Introduction.

Pickup the book and read

Biafra's independence was recognized by Tanzania, Zambia, Gabon, and the Ivory Coast (Of course those who have not kept their houses in order, are always the first to talk), but it was compromised in the eyes of most African states by the approval of South Africa, Southern Rhodesia, and Portugal (Black people haters, why will they not recognize you). Britain extended diplomatic support and limited military assistance to the federal government. The Soviet Union became an important source of military equipment for Nigeria. Modern Soviet-built warplanes, flown by Egyptian and British pilots, (This is why I love white people they fund your wars, and then screw you up at the same time ) interdicted supply flights and inflicted heavy casualties during raids on Biafran urban centers. In line with its policy of noninvolvement, the United States prohibited the sale of military goods to either side while continuing to recognize the FMG.

In October 1969, Ojukwu appealed for United Nations (UN) mediation for a cease-fire as a prelude to peace negotiations. But the federal government insisted on Biafra's surrender, and Gowon observed that "rebel leaders had made it clear that this is a fight to the finish and that no concession will ever satisfy them." (Critical reading suggest that concessions must have been made) In December federal forces opened a four-pronged offensive, involving 120,000 troops, that sliced Biafra in half. When Owerri fell on January 6, 1970, Biafran resistance collapsed. Ojukwu fled to the Ivory Coast, leaving his chief of staff, Philip Effiong, behind as "officer administering the government." (Coward  ). Effiong (Smart guy) called for an immediate, unconditional cease-fire January 12 and submitted to the authority of the federal government at ceremonies in Lagos.

Forgiven by the Nigerian authorities in the early 1980s, he admits to no remorse for the events of the civil war.

I don't feel responsible at all. I did the best I could
Chief Ojukwu
"At 33 I reacted as a brilliant 33 year old," he says (so full of himself). "At 66 it is my hope that if I had to face this I should also confront it as a brilliant 66 year old.

"Responsibility for what went on - how can I feel responsible in a situation in which I put myself out and saved the people from genocide? (Then he ran away like a coward to cote d'ivoire) No, I don't feel responsible at all. I[b] did the best I could[/b]."

For the men who fought for the Biafran cause, defeat has been followed by 30 years of humiliation. The wounded veterans line up in their wheelchairs alongside the main roads in Enugu, begging for money from passers-by.

Men like former Sergeant Michael Okafo believe they are being punished for fighting on the losing side .

He wants food, he wants to educate his children and he wants shelter. He wants to be treated like any other Nigerian (Not biafran).

A Law graduate of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Odumegwu-Ojukwu is now married to the Ikemba, and the couple have children together. She divides her time between her home and cosmetics business Bianca Blend, in Enugu.

An Igbo official, Ukapi "Tony" Asika, was named administrator of the new East Central State, comprising the Igbo heartland. Asika had remained loyal to the federal government during the civil war, but as a further act of conciliation, his all-Igbo cabinet included members who had served under the secessionist regime. Asika was unpopular with many Igbo, who considered him a traitor, and his administration was characterized as inept and corrupt (consisting of course of members of the secessionist movement). In three years under his direction, however, the state government (The igbo preferred war instead) achieved the rehabilitation of 70 percent of the industry incapacitated during the war. The federal government granted funds to cover the state's operating expenses for an interim period, and much of the war damage was repaired. Social services and public utilities slowly were reinstituted, although not to the prewar levels

Because charges of genocide had fueled international sympathy for Biafra (Also known as igbo propaganda)

, the FMG allowed a team of international experts to observe the surrender and to look for evidence. Subsequently, the observers testified that they found no evidence of genocide or systematic destruction of property, although there was considerable evidence of famine and death as a result of the war. Furthermore, under Gowon's close supervision, the federal government ensured that Igbo civilians would not be treated as defeated enemies. A program was launched to reintegrate the Biafran rebels into a unified Nigeria. A number of public officials who had "actively counselled, aided, or abetted" secession were dismissed, but a clear distinction was made between them and those who had simply carried out their duties. Igbo personnel soon were being reenlisted in the federal armed forces. T[b]here were no trials and few people were imprisoned[/b]. Ojukwu, in exile, was made the scapegoat (To show you that this article is unbiased), but efforts to have him extradited failed.

In the mid-1960s economic and political instability and ethnic friction characterized Nigerian public life. In the mostly Hausa north, resentment against the more prosperous, educated Igbo minority erupted into violence. In September 1966, some 10,000 to 30,000 Igbo people were massacred in the Northern Region, and perhaps 1,000,000 fled as refugees to the Igbo-dominated east. Non-Igbos were then expelled from the Eastern Region (Even tribes who did not harm you).

In 1966, anti-Ibo rioting, largely by Hausas, killed about 30,000 Ibos and created about a million Ibo refugees. During the ensuing civil war, it was fear of renewed killing that kept many Ibos fighting.

But after Biafra's collapse, the massacres did not take place. Yakubu Gowon, then Nigeria's President, declared a policy of ''no victor and no vanquished.''

''I must say Nigeria has done a good job,'' said Benjamin Odogwu, an Ibo who served as Biafra's Director of Military Intelligence . ''The war was fought in all viciousness (very peace loving igbos). We were surprised by the reception, the embraces.''

Within Eastern Nigeria (Biafra), General Ojukwu’s tactics led to a quick alienation of many talented Ibos. From the very beginning, he set out to establish his authority with a heavy hand. Under his orders Dr. Michael Okpara, the popular former civilian Premier of Eastern Nigeria, was clamped in jail. So were a number of his ministers. The only notable exception was the former Attorney General, Mr. C. C. Mojekwu, Ojukwu’s kinsman, whom he retained and made Biafra’s Minister of Interior

Avid for power, he paid more attention to the politics of the war than to the one basic question of security. Biafra’s efforts were trimmed to his size and through much of the conflict reflected his own strength as well as his own weaknesses. This personification of the struggle and the lethal cloud of illusion, which it created around him, were to persist until the end. Thus on the same day as his more down-to-earth successor, General (Phillip) Effiong, signed the formal act of Biafra’s surrender, General Ojukwu was still declaring: “While I live, Biafra lives. If I am no more, it would be only a matter of time for the noble concept to be swept into oblivion.

SEFAGO:

Igbo Tribalism

tribalist 

uchmann:

i really do not understand all these noise making, you are all supposed to be intelligent, if somebody post an untruth, you show it up to be so with facts of your own. before someboby else starts rambling, please take time to read up on what caused the biafran war. and if those things are still with us can we really speak of peace. if we had solved the problem in the beginning we would not have the niger delta issue. but most of us are just as dumb as the leaders we curse.