US Lawmakers Stop $875m Military Equipment Sale To Nigeria Over Lekki Toll Gate Massacre, Human Rights Abuse



The behind-the-scenes controversy over the proposed arms sale illustrates a broader debate among Washington policymakers over how to balance national security with human rights objectives.

United States lawmakers are stalling a proposed sale of attack helicopters to Nigeria amid mounting concerns about the Nigerian government’s human rights record as its military grapples with multiple security crises at once, Foreign Policy magazine reports.


The top Democrat and Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee have delayed clearing a proposed sale of 12 AH-1 Cobra attack helicopters and accompanying defense systems to the Nigerian military, pausing a deal worth some $875 million, according to U.S. officials and congressional aides familiar with the matter.


The behind-the-scenes controversy over the proposed arms sale illustrates a broader debate among Washington policymakers over how to balance national security with human rights objectives.

The hold on the sale also showcases how powerful U.S. lawmakers want to push the Biden administration to rethink U.S. relations with Africa’s most populous country amid overarching concerns that Nigerian President, Muhammadu Buhari, is drifting toward authoritarianism as his government is besieged by multiple security challenges, including jihadist insurgency.

Nigeria is on the front lines in the battle against Boko Haram, one of the world’s deadliest terrorist groups, and plays a role in U.S. and international efforts to roll back extremist groups in the Sahel region of West Africa.

But Western governments and international human rights organizations have ramped up their criticisms of the Nigerian government, particularly in the wake of its ban on Twitter, systemic corruption issues, and the Nigerian military’s role in deadly crackdowns on protesters after widespread demonstrations against police brutality last year.

Sen. Bob Menendez, the chairperson of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called for a “fundamental rethink of the framework of our overall engagement” with Nigeria during a Senate hearing with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in June.

Both Menendez and Sen. Jim Risch, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, have placed a hold on the proposed arms sale, according to multiple U.S. officials and congressional aides familiar with the matter, who spoke to Foreign Policy on condition of anonymity.

The details on the proposed sale were first sent by the U.S. State Department to Congress in January before then-former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden was inaugurated as president, according to officials familiar with the matter.

In addition to the helicopters, the proposed sale included 28 helicopter engines produced by GE Aviation, 14 military-grade aircraft navigation systems made by Honeywell, and 2,000 advanced precision kill weapon systems—laser-guided rocket munitions, according to information sent by the State Department to Congress and reviewed by Foreign Policy.

Nigeria has relied on U.S. arms sales in the past to help address multiple security challenges: the 12-year insurgency by Boko Haram militants in the country’s northeast, a spate of high-profile kidnapping-for-ransom campaigns targeting schoolchildren in the country’s northwest, and deadly clashes between the country’s semi-nomadic herders and farmers fueled by climate change and environmental degradation of the country’s arable land.

The State Department describes the U.S.-Nigeria relationship as “among the most important in sub-Saharan Africa” and has provided limited funding for various military training and education programs.

Some experts said the United States should hit the pause button on major defense sales until it makes a broader assessment of the extent to which corruption and mismanagement hobble the Nigerian military and whether the military is doing enough to minimize civilian casualties in its campaign against Boko Haram and other violent insurrectionists.

“There doesn’t have to be a reason why we don’t provide weapons or equipment to the Nigerian military,” said Judd Devermont, director of the Africa program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a think tank.

“But it has to be done with an assessment of how it will, one, change the direction of conflict in Nigeria, and, two, that they will use it consistent with our laws. In both cases, it’s either a question mark or a fail.”

“There is a culture of impunity that exists around abuses by the military,” said Anietie Ewang, the Nigeria researcher at Human Rights Watch.

Ewang cited the Nigerian military’s killing of unarmed protesters at Lekki toll gate in Lagos during the country’s massive #EndSARS demonstrations against police corruption and brutality last year as well as cases documented by human rights organizations of abuses in the military’s campaign against Boko Haram.

“I’m sure it’s a difficult situation. There are so many conflicts springing up across the country now,” Ewang said.

“The authorities, I presume, are trying to do the best they can to save lives and property. But this must be done in accordance with human rights standards. You can’t throw one out just to be able to achieve the other.”

Recall that the former U.S. President, Donald Trump’s administration agreed to sell the Nigerian government 12 A-29 Super Tucano warplanes, resurrecting a proposed sale the Obama administration froze after the Nigerian Air Force bombed a refugee camp that January. The first batch of those planes arrived in Nigeria earlier this month.

http://saharareporters.com/2021/07/28/report-us-lawmakers-stop-875m-military-equipment-sale-nigeria-over-lekki-toll-gate


Lalasticlala

After the US Tucano Jets have been delivered to Nigeria

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/nigeria-receives-first-six-light-attack-planes-united-states-2021-07-22/

Lately, seems it is only on SR will you read content today and read their apology tomorrow. The headline is false and misleading.
The Lawmakers did not stop nada. The US government under Donald Trump already got the contract for the US government and the military hardwares are being delivered to Nigeria as agreed.
Sowore obviously has an agenda for publishing this inaccurate news on his platform.

Giving a gun to a murderous society is tantamount to aiding and abetting killings of innocent civilians.

Security that allows insurgents to run business and go for people protesting against indiscriminate killings from both govt hired law enforcement agents (police, army, DSS etc) and govt pampered insurgents businessmen running wide uncheck.

Talking about killing the house owner for a thief. The govt is more focused on acquiring the lands of Nigerians for foreign Fulani. Until this govt is done in 2023, any country selling weapons to us is complicit in the act of human rights abuses. Evidently, the weapons bought are not used on terrorists. They rather use it on armless citizens while allowing the blood merchant businessmen to run their businesses of extortion, maiming, raping and illegal transfer of land ownership through violence and displacing real land owners to IDP camps.

Their focus is more on those people speaking up to the power and challenging them from massacring indigenous Nigerians for migrants Fulanis.

It takes another version of insurgents to kill bokoharam leader. There was even a northern leader asking govt to be involved in the conflict and protect bokoharam from ISWAP. I think that was Idamu Garbage

Igboho and kanu are their headaches not bokoharam and bandits or militants Fulani herdsmen.

Sowore should continue lying for the gullible minds.

Only ipob could've done this..No wonder the Fulani fears them so much!

There is nothing bad in their decisions, it is their right. Nigeria should negotiate with China for military hardware, it is more cheaper and they are very reliable.

FreeStuffsNG:
After the US Tucano Jets have been delivered to Nigeria

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/nigeria-receives-first-six-light-attack-planes-united-states-2021-07-22/

Lately, seems it is only on SR will you read content today and read their apology tomorrow. The headline is false and misleading.
The Lawmakers did not stop nada. The US government under Donald Trump already got the contract for the US government and the military hardwares are being delivered to Nigeria as agreed.
Sowore obviously has an agenda for publishing this inaccurate news on his platform.

Just have some peace. This news is about stopping other weapons from coming in. Go school, Una no to gree, see urself now.

aremuforlife:
There is nothing bad in their decisions, it is their right. Nigeria should negotiate with China for military hardware, it is more cheaper and they are very reliable.

I hope he recharges his batteries as well in China. I will prefer that cos China stuffs no deh last

Nonpartisan1:
Sowore should continue lying for the gullible minds.

Okay. Can you tell us the truth?

Selling defence equipment to FGN under Buhari is like selling defence equipment to Boko Haram/ ISWAP/Killer fulani herdsmen/Bandits

Serves the terrorist-laden government right.When Lai Mohammed in the ACN was writing the US not to sell weapons to then government, guess they never knew a day like this will come.Whatever goes around not only comes around but also stays around.Karma is a bitch.

bobowaja:

Just have some peace. This news is about stopping other weapons from coming in. Go school, Una no to gree, see urself now.

"Sen. Bob Menendez, the chairperson of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called for a “fundamental rethink of the framework of our overall engagement” with Nigeria during a Senate hearing with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in June.

Both Menendez and Sen. Jim Risch, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, have placed a hold on the proposed arms sale, according to multiple U.S. officials and congressional aides familiar with the matter, who spoke to Foreign Policy on condition of anonymity."



I completely agree with you that you are unteachable sir and you know more than me.
Just by appeal, I need you to to read it again and point where you saw it as a new contract.

The committee head met with Blinken in June and the Tuscano jets delivered to Nigeria in July. That's to tell you that the issue is no longer about fulfilling the contract obligation sir.
Finally, no single lawmaker can unilaterally place a hold on arms sale between the two sovereign states , the lawmaker can recommend it to the committee which will then submit to US congress or Senate to pass as a resolution after debate of the recommendations but the report didn't even state so that US senate or congress, as an arm of US government, opposed it but SR obviously has the intention to mislead . The report didn't even state that the committees as a whole opposed it and legislative committees are different from the individuals while the committees are still different from the congress.

FreeStuffsNG:



"Sen. Bob Menendez, the chairperson of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called for a “fundamental rethink of the framework of our overall engagement” with Nigeria during a Senate hearing with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in June.

Both Menendez and Sen. Jim Risch, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, have placed a hold on the proposed arms sale, according to multiple U.S. officials and congressional aides familiar with the matter, who spoke to Foreign Policy on condition of anonymity."



I completely agree with you that you are unteachable sir and you know more than me.
Just by appeal, I need you to to read it again and point where you saw it as a new contract.

The committee head met with Blinken in June and the Tuscano jets delivered to Nigeria in July. That's to tell you that the issue is no longer about fulfilling the contract obligation sir.

you're wrong, the weapons blocked were listed on the news report and the Super Tucano aircrafts were not among, go back and reread the article.

abouzaid:
you're wrong, the weapons blocked were listed on the news report and the Super Tucano aircrafts were not among, go back and reread the article.

You are right, it was blocked and Tuscano alone was cleared by the lawmakers o ,smh. I have forgotten that SR is a gospel according to you sir. Have a good evening.

As much as I'm genuinely angry about Gen Buhari indifference to these Fulani killer terrorist and killer animalistic bandits,I will never forgive any Nigerian that gives this administration any excuse
of not being able to purchase ammunition because of human rights abuse,u have become part of the problem by indirectly scoring an own goal.
If Gen Buhari needs to buy 2000 alpha jet helicopters,20000 cobra spitting helicopters equipped with a I million round spitting bullets I will genuinely curse any Nigerian that writes a letter to the United States talking about human Rights.
What's human rights for endsars victims when thousands are being massacred daily by these crazy bandits,entire villages are being whipped out and someone is writing letter to US Congress to block the sale of weapons,and these same Nigerians will come online to condemn the government of Gen Buhari.
Gen Buhari buy all the weapons of mass destruction you need to wipe out all these miscreants from the face of the Earth, I'm sure if you buy and don't use it,the next president will not have any excuse to destroy these bandits

Russia and China are available ..

US should keep their equipments to themselves

Good, no country have the right to sell weapons to a lawless country, where immoralities are the order of the day.

FreeStuffsNG:



"Sen. Bob Menendez, the chairperson of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called for a “fundamental rethink of the framework of our overall engagement” with Nigeria during a Senate hearing with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in June.

Both Menendez and Sen. Jim Risch, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, have placed a hold on the proposed arms sale, according to multiple U.S. officials and congressional aides familiar with the matter, who spoke to Foreign Policy on condition of anonymity."



I completely agree with you that you are unteachable sir and you know more than me.
Just by appeal, I need you to to read it again and point where you saw it as a new contract.

The committee head met with Blinken in June and the Tuscano jets delivered to Nigeria in July. That's to tell you that the issue is no longer about fulfilling the contract obligation sir.
Finally, no single lawmaker can unilaterally place a hold on arms sale between the two sovereign states , the lawmaker can recommend it to the committee which will then submit to US congress or Senate to pass as a resolution after debate of the recommendations but the report didn't even state so that US senate or congress, as an arm of US government, opposed it but SR obviously has the intention to mislead . The report didn't even state that the committees as a whole opposed it and legislative committees are different from the individuals while the committees are still different from the congress.

You are still dull. US has being selling weapons to Nigeria in tranches. Just like batch by batch since the beginning of fourth republic. They sell weapons to some countries yearly and each year, they review the sale.

This news is all about selling another weapons to Nigeria which is being discuss and will probably be trashed cos of human rights abuses.

Aboki, half education is disastrous. Go school Una no go gree.