IPOB Demands Global Inquiry, Accuses Nigerian Government of Fueling South‑East Violence

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has intensified calls for an independent international investigation into persistent insecurity affecting Nigeria’s South‑East region, accusing the federal government of misrepresenting facts and failing to protect local communities. The separatist group said the crisis in Igbo‑land has been mischaracterised by authorities and used to justify heavy‑handed security operations against civilians and pro‑Biafra activists.

In a statement, IPOB’s leadership urged foreign governments and human rights bodies to intervene, saying only an impartial, globally‑mandated inquiry can uncover the real causes of the violence and hold accountable those responsible for atrocities. The group highlighted what it described as ongoing ethno‑religious killings and gross rights violations in the region and welcomed recent international scrutiny of Nigeria’s human rights record as a step toward justice.

Detained IPOB leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu has separately written to international figures, alleging state‑sponsored killings of Christian and Igbo populations in the South‑East and likening the situation to a looming genocide. Kanu’s appeal underscores IPOB’s position that the Nigerian government has fostered insecurity for political ends and must be held to account by an international fact‑finding mission.

The government has not publicly agreed to such an inquiry, and Nigerian authorities have generally denied claims that its security forces are targeting civilians, instead framing their operations as necessary to counter terrorism and criminal groups in the South‑East. Meanwhile, human rights organisations have documented widespread killings, enforced disappearances, and other abuses in the region, urging transparent investigations by Nigerian authorities themselves.