Nnamdi Kanu Marks Five Years Anniversary Of Parents Who Died After Nigerian Army’s Brutal Assault On Abia Home
During the attack, the palace of Kanu’s father, Eze Israel Kanu, who was the traditional ruler of the Afaraukwu community was destroyed and the IPOB leader’s father and mother were severely injured.
The detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, on Friday marked five years anniversary of his father and mother who died in February 2020, following severe injuries inflicted on them by troops of the Operation Python Dance II of the Nigerian Army in September 2017.
Recall that the troops had invaded Kanu’s family home in Afaraukwu, Abia State, around 5pm on September 10, 2017.
During the attack, the palace of Kanu’s father, Eze Israel Kanu, who was the traditional ruler of the Afaraukwu community was destroyed and the IPOB leader’s father and mother were severely injured.
The soldiers on arrival shot sporadically for about 40 minutes that the invasion lasted, with several people reportedly killed and scores injured.
Over two years after the attack, Kanu’s parents died in 2020.
On Friday, Kanu marked the anniversary of their deaths from the Department of State Services (DSS) detention where he has been held since June 2021 when he was rearrested and renditioned from Kenya.
In a statement he personally signed and made available to journalists through his Special Counsel, Barrister Aloy Ejimakor, Kanu said, “Five years ago today, I lost my precious parents (Their Royal Majesties, Eze Sir Israel Okwu Kanu (JP) and Lolo Ugoeze Sally Nmeme Okwu Kanu).
“They sustained injurious trauma from which they never recovered from whilst 28 other innocent souls were killed just because the Nigerian Army without provocation launched a deadly assault at our royal home with the sole intention of killing me.
“Because I survived, they quickly tagged IPOB a terrorist group to cover up their horrendous crime and confuse the gullible which has persisted till date.
“The best tribute is to never forget what happened to them and all who fell in defense of freedom at our home.”
He noted, “The Abuja-based murderers and their accomplices in Igboland that ordered this heinous cold-blooded massacre of these innocent souls are still peddling their lies against my legitimate right to freely agitate for Biafra as recognised by the laws of Nigeria.”
