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Stars on Their Shoulders. Blood on Their Hands. War Crimes Committed

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Stars on Their Shoulders. Blood on Their Hands. War Crimes Committed STARS ON THEIR SHOULDERS. BLOOD ON THEIR HANDS. WAR CRIMES COMMITTED BY THE NIGERIAN MILITARY Amnesty International is a global movement of more than 7 million people who campaign for a world where human rights are enjoyed by all. Our vision is for every person to enjoy all the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights standards. We are independent of any government, political ideology, economic interest or religion and are funded mainly by our membership and public donations. First published in 2015 by Amnesty International Ltd Peter Benenson House 1 Easton Street London WC1X 0DW United Kingdom © Amnesty International 2015 Index: AFR 44/1657/2015 Original language: English Printed by Amnesty International, International Secretariat, United Kingdom All rights reserved. This publication is copyright, but may be reproduced by any method without fee for advocacy, campaigning and teaching purposes, but not for resale. The copyright holders request that all such use be registered with them for impact assessment purposes. For copying in any other circumstances, or for reuse in other publications, or for translation or adaptation, prior written permission must be obtained from the publishers, and a fee may be payable. To request permission, or for any other inquiries, please contact [email protected] Cover photo: Nigerian troops inspect the former emir's palace that was used by Boko Haram as their headquarters but was burnt down when they fled Bama on March 25, 2015. Nigeria's military has retaken the northeastern town of Bama from Boko Haram, but signs of mass killings carried out by Boko Haram earlier this year remain Approximately 7,500 people have been displaced by the fighting in Bama and surrounding areas. © Nichole Sobecki/AFP/Getty Images Stars on their shoulders. Blood on their hands. 1 War crimes committed by the Nigerian military Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ................................................................................................. 3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ........................................................................................ 15 BACKGROUND ........................................................................................................... 18 Armed conflict in north-east Nigeria .......................................................................... 18 Boko Haram ............................................................................................................ 20 Nigerian security forces ............................................................................................ 20 Civilian Joint Task Force ........................................................................................... 24 LEGAL FRAMEWORK .................................................................................................. 28 International humanitarian law and war crimes ........................................................... 28 Legal responsibility for violations of international humanitarian law ............................... 29 Arbitrary deprivation of liberty ................................................................................... 31 Crimes under international law committed by the military ............................................ 34 Jurisdiction over war crimes and crimes against humanity ............................................ 38 WAR CRIMES BY THE MILITARY ................................................................................. 40 Extrajudicial executions ............................................................................................ 40 Deaths in custody .................................................................................................... 58 Mass arbitrary arrests and unlawful detention ............................................................. 75 Enforced disappearances .......................................................................................... 86 Torture and other ill-treatment .................................................................................. 90 Individual and command responsibility for war crimes ................................................. 92 Knowledge that crimes were being committed ............................................................ 94 Failure to act ......................................................................................................... 101 Index: AFR44/1657/2015 Amnesty International June 2015 2 Stars on their shoulders. Blood on their hands. War crimes committed by the Nigerian military. INTERNATIONAL MILITARY ASSISTANCE ................................................................. 108 Military assistance to the Nigerian security forces ..................................................... 108 Multinational Joint Task Force and regional cooperation ............................................ 111 INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT ......................................................................... 113 RECOMMENDATIONS .............................................................................................. 115 Appendix 1 Communications with the Government ....................................................... 126 Amnesty International June 2015 Index: AFR44/1657/2015 Stars on their shoulders. Blood on their hands. 3 War crimes committed by the Nigerian military Index: AFR44/1657/2015 Amnesty International June 2015 4 Stars on their shoulders. Blood on their hands. War crimes committed by the Nigerian military. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In the course of security operations against Boko Haram in north-east Nigeria, Nigerian military forces have extrajudicially executed more than 1,200 people; they have arbitrarily arrested at least 20,0001 people, mostly young men and boys; and have committed countless acts of torture. Hundreds, if not thousands, of Nigerians have become victims of enforced disappearance; and at least 7,000 people have died in military detention as a result of starvation, extreme overcrowding and denial of medical assistance. Amnesty International has concluded that these acts, committed in the context of a non- international armed conflict, constitute war crimes for which military commanders bear both individual and command responsibility, and may amount to crimes against humanity. Specifically, Amnesty International names five high-ranking military officials who were in charge of operations in north-east Nigeria from 2012 to date, as well as two Chiefs of Army Staff and two Chiefs of Defence Staff, who should be investigated for potential individual and command responsibility for these crimes. Amnesty International has handed over the names of these officers, as well as other officers not named in this report, and related evidence to the International Criminal Court. This report is based on more than 412 interviews with victims, their relatives, eyewitnesses, human rights activists, doctors, journalists, lawyers and military sources. Amnesty International also analysed more than 90 videos and numerous photographs showing members of the security forces and their allied militia, the Civilian Joint Task Force, committing violations. Amnesty International independently interviewed eight military sources, and examined more than 800 official documents, including military reports and other correspondence between military units based in the north-east and Defence Headquarters. Amnesty International shared its findings with the Nigerian authorities during dozens of meeting as well as 55 written submissions, requesting information and specific action to address the violations. Government responses are reflected in relevant sections of this report. ARMED CONFLICT IN NORTH-EAST NIGERIA The conflict in Nigeria dates back to 2009, when the Islamist insurgent movement popularly known as Boko Haram waged a violent campaign against the Nigerian government. The conflict has spread and intensified as a result of a complex web of socio-cultural, economic, ethno-religious and sub-regional factors. It has evolved into a non-international armed conflict between Boko Haram and Nigerian security forces in the states of Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa and has been marked by egregious violations committed by both sides. 1 Minimum estimate based on Amnesty International research, interviews with military sources, officials at state and federal government levels, victims and relatives of victims as well as human rights defenders in north-east Nigeria between 2009 and 2015. Amnesty International June 2015 Index: AFR44/1657/2015 Stars on their shoulders. Blood on their hands. 5 War crimes committed by the Nigerian military It has claimed at least 17,000 lives, mostly civilian, and forced more than one million people to flee their homes. Amnesty International believes that the situation in north-east Nigeria has constituted a non- international armed conflict since at least May 2013, given the level of hostilities and the fact that Boko Haram was a well-organized force which controlled territory and had a clear command structure. Boko Haram has used bombs to launch attacks against government or “western” targets, to intimidate opponents and to kill civilians. Its fighters have slaughtered civilians during attacks on towns and villages; assaulted and abducted teachers and students; abducted at least 2,000 young women and girls and subjected many of them to forced marriage; forcibly recruited men and boys; and burned and destroyed houses and schools. Amnesty International has extensively documented
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