By Hajara Abdullahi
The Nigerian Army’s 23 Brigade Headquarters has denied allegations circulating on some online platforms claiming that the Brigade and its Commander were involved in the shooting of women protesters in Lamurde, Adamawa State.
This was contained in a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter) by the Acting Assistant Director, Army Public Relations, Operation Hadin Kai/23 Brigade, Olusegun Abidoye, on Tuesday.
According to Abidoye, the reports are false and a deliberate attempt to tarnish the image of the Brigade, its Commander, and by extension, the Nigerian Army.
He clarified that neither the Brigade Commander nor his escorts were present at the scene of the communal clash, as the Commander was attending a virtual weekly briefing with the Chief of Army Staff at the time of the alleged shooting.
“Headquarters 23 Brigade wishes to set the record straight that combined troops of the 23 Brigade Garrison, Nigerian Police Force, NSCDC, and DSS received information about communal clashes between the Bachama and Chobo tribes of Lamurde LGA, Adamawa State, at about 0135 hours (1:30 AM) on Monday, 8 December 2025,” he said.
Abidoye explained that as the troops attempted to secure the Local Government Secretariat, some women blocked the road and prevented their passage, while armed men suspected to be from the Bachama extraction fired indiscriminately within the community.
“Troops then created a passage and proceeded to the Local Government Secretariat (LGS) to secure the area. At this point, no woman was shot or injured. Otherwise, troops would not have been allowed to find any passage through the crowd,” he added.
He further stated that two women’s corpses were later brought by members of the community to the troops stationed at the Local Government Lodge, alleging that they were killed by the soldiers.
“Without equivocation, the casualties were caused by the unprofessional handling of automatic weapons by local militias who are not proficiently trained to operate such arms,” he said.
The statement clarified that the communal clash stemmed from an unresolved land dispute and ethnic acrimony between the Chobo and Bachama tribes. Troops, he noted, have since moved swiftly to restore normalcy to the affected areas of Tingno, Rigange, Tito, Waduku, and Lamurde.
“The Brigade remains resolute and committed to the discharge of its constitutional duties in aid of civil authorities and will continue to apply due diligence in its operational engagements to ensure peace and stability in its Area of Responsibility,” he concluded.
The Brigade also urged the general public to disregard the malicious reports, sympathized with the families of the slain women, and appealed to the warring communities to embrace peace.