AMNESTY International Nigeria has called for independent, transparent investigations into widespread killings and human rights abuses across the South-East, warning that impunity remains the single greatest obstacle to lasting peace in the region.
The appeal came during a stakeholders’ engagement in Awka, Anambra State, where the organisation presented two major reports: A Decade of Impunity: Attacks and Unlawful Killings in South-East Nigeria and Tiger Base Atrocities: Human Rights Violations. The event drew civil society representatives, members of the Nigerian Bar Association, religious and traditional leaders, academics, and media practitioners from across the region.
In her opening address, Amnesty International Nigeria’s Media and Communications Manager, Doosuur Iwambe Tsee, said insecurity had touched virtually every family and community, either directly or indirectly. She urged citizens to break their silence, stressing that fear had stifled too many voices.
“Everyone has been affected by insecurity one way or another. We must continue to speak out and push for change – there is no other place we can call home,” she said.
The two reports, she explained, were the result of extensive field investigations, with researchers interviewing victims, witnesses and stakeholders, often at considerable personal risk. The first, launched in August 2025, examined attacks and unlawful killings across the South-East; the second, released in April 2026, documented torture, arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances and other violations at the Nigeria Police Anti-Kidnapping Unit – known as Tiger Base – in Owerri, Imo State.
Amnesty International documented 1,844 killings across the South-East between January 2021 and June 2023, with the figure rising to at least 5,500 by December 2024. The violence, the organisation said, involved both state and non‑state actors, including security forces, armed groups popularly called “unknown gunmen”, Ebubeagu operatives, IPOB and suspected ESN members.
Ms Tsee noted that following the arrest and sentencing of Finland-based separatist agitator Simon Ekpa, the overall number of attacks fell significantly, with abductions reportedly dropping by about 50 per cent. However, she added that in Imo State, although attacks became less frequent, fatalities rose by nearly 70 per cent – a sign that the violence had grown more lethal.
She also drew attention to what Amnesty described as a recently discovered “Murder Valley” straddling communities in Anambra and Imo states, saying the finding underscored the urgent need to tackle root causes rather than merely respond to consequences.
“The common denominator is impunity – many perpetrators believe they can commit these acts without consequences,” she said. “For many people, silence is not indifference; it is survival.”
Presenting the research findings, Amnesty Research Officer Maurice Chukwu said Anambra featured prominently in the report, with communities experiencing armed attacks, cult violence, kidnappings, displacement and severe movement restrictions. Unlike parts of Northern Nigeria where particular armed groups dominate, he said, the South‑East presented a far more complex picture involving multiple actors – armed gangs, vigilantes, Ebubeagu operatives, herders and security agencies.
Quoting one interviewee, he said: “We know the gunmen. They are not unknown gunmen. They are people from our communities.”
The report cited armed camps operating in communities including Lilu, Ukpor, Okija, Uga, Ihiala, Azia, Iseke and Osumoghu, with residents reporting repeated attacks, displacement and abandoned farms and homes. It also documented high‑profile killings, including the September 2021 murder of Dr Chike Akunyili – husband of the late former NAFDAC Director‑General, Prof. Dora Akunyili – alongside his driver and police orderly, as well as the abduction and killing of a state lawmaker and rising cult‑related violence in Awka, Onitsha, Obosi, Ogidi and Umuoji.
The Monday sit‑at‑home order, the report said, had severely disrupted education, healthcare, transport and commerce across the region. “We are trapped. If we stay at home, we suffer. If we go out, we are afraid,” one resident told researchers.
Although Amnesty acknowledged that Anambra’s security initiatives – including the Homeland Security Law, the Agunechemba outfit and efforts to end the sit‑at‑home – had been welcomed by many, it maintained that sustainable security could only come through the rule of law, respect for human rights and genuine accountability.
The organisation urged federal and state governments, security agencies and all stakeholders to investigate all alleged abuses, ensure justice for victims, compensate affected families where appropriate, and strengthen institutional oversight to restore public confidence across the South‑East.
