…Rescue 850 Christian Hostages In Kaduna
By Divine Ndukuba, Awka
Rights Group, the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule (Intersociety), has passionately urged Nigerian military to return to its operational, secularity and semi professionalism to regain public trust and confidence.
A statement signed by the group chairman, Emeka Umeagbalasi and other officials, said that rare opportunity still beckons on the Nigerian military to respect its pre-June 2015 operational neutrality and secularity.
It noted that this had helped to raise its public trust and confidence among Nigerians; irrespective of ethnic and religious affiliations to about 45%, which drastically reduced to less than 20% since then, especially among civilian citizens of the East and members of minority ethnic and religious groupings in the North.
According to the group, the major challenges facing the Nigerian military since then are lack of neutrality and professional soldiering.
It stated that military widely suspected ‘romance with jihadist bandits and their allies in the north using negotiations and pacifications have made it difficult for the government and the country’s security forces and their commanders to successfully extricate themselves from involvement.
It also included vicarious or direct liability in the attacks unleashed on civilian citizens and their properties cutting across indigenous Christians, Muslims and Traditionalists leading to killing them in their tens of thousands forcing millions of IDPs, tens of thousands of refugees to be generated, and millions of others to be displaced as well as wanton destruction of their natural and earned properties.
“The same military that romances and pacifies jihadist bandits and allied others in the North, is found to have turned around and unleashed the East with maximum force and brutalities including incessant raids and confiscation of ‘self-defense, gaming and hunting weapons’, classified in the country’s written laws such as Firearms Act of 2004 as ‘un-prohibited firearms,” it stated.
“It is shocking and alarming that Nigeria is the only place where terror jihadists under the watch of the military and police are allowed to address world press conference brandishing loaded automatic rifles and other illicit small arms and light weapons without having successfully been disarmed, demobilized, rehabilitated, de-radicalized and transformed into lawful, liberal and tolerant civilian life.
In a swift reaction, It called for the freedom of over 850 Christian hostages in Jihadist Camps In Rijana, Kaduna state, which according to a Special Report by Truth-Nigeria, dated Sept. 4, 2025 are languishing inside Rijana Forest, near a Nigerian Army Base and others in Kachia county, Southern part of Kaduna State.
The Rijana Forest, according to exclusive investigations by Truth-Nigeria researchers showed that the Forest is located along Kaduna-Abuja Expressway and home to the Nigerian Army Table Hill Training Area and Army School of Artillery, among other military sites.
The special report also named three Christian sisters of the same parents: Maureen, Esther and Anita as among those abducted by Fulani Jihadists and taken to their Rijana camps where they were held and tortured for weeks before being freed after payment of N2.3m in August 2025, amongst other.
Also the group stated that there are growing concerns among independent and non-partisan South-East civilian citizens regarding the posting of senior military officers to man the country’s military formations in the South-East.
“Senior military officers of Northern Muslim extraction have dominated senior postings in the region,with more than 95% Christian population and Christianity-affiliated others.
“The authorities of the military are strongly called upon to rewind and ensure ethno-religious balancing when posting senior military officers to man their formations in the South-East.
“According to our recent checks, there are at least four top senior military and police officers from Muslim Northern Nigeria holding forth as top commanders in Imo State alone.
They include: 1 Brig.-Gen. Ibrahim Abbas, Commander, 34 Army Brigade, Obinze, near Owerri, 2. Air Commodore D.E. Bello, Commander, Nigerian Air Force 211 Quick Response Group Base, Owerri, 3. Navy Commodore MA Alhassan, Commander, Nigerian Naval Base, Oguta, Imo State, and 4. Mallam Aboki Danjuma, Commissioner of Police, Imo State Command of the Nigeria Police Force.
The group also took a wipe on the activities of the Nigeria Police Force, particularly in the East where its field monitors and researchers recently observed that more than four of every five roadblock police personnel are extortionist and corruption friendly, with about 70% of their core duties and attention abandoned.
“It is also similar to military personnel on Eastern roads where more three of every five are found to be extortionist, corruption and brutality friendly, contrary to provisions of Section 108 of the Armed Forces Act-that outlaws military roadblock extortion and brutality.
