The primary reason why a country exists in the first place is to secure lives and property. However, it has been proven again that Nigeria is one country that cannot guarantee the safety of the citizens. Gunmen suspected to be cult members yesterday had a field day in Aluu community in Ikwerre Local Government Area and Obite community in Etche council area of Rivers State, killing 19 people, including a naval officer, the Punch reports.
These victims met their untimely death when two blood tasty cult groups fought themselves in the communities.
One group, believed to be of Greenlanders cult, invaded Aluu in reprisal against a rival group, Icelanders and killed 15 persons, including a nursing mother.
A naval personnel, who was part of the Joint Task Force team sent to the area to enforce the law, was hit by a bullet from the cultists.
Many innocent persons were killed and several others were left with bullet wounds.
After they were done with Aluu, some of the cult members went to Etche community and killed four persons, an witness said.
It was gathered that the assailants carried out the coordinated attacks based on a tip-off that some members of the Icelanders were taking hiding in Aluu. The residents of the area are now living in fear, while some had fled the affected communities fled their homes.
An eye witness said, “Some cult members believed to be members of Greenlanders entered the community and killed some people. The boys operated in a very terrible manner. They went to a supermarket where people usually go to buy something and opened fire on over six people.
“Some people narrowly escaped with gun wounds. We do not know the cause of the killings, although we suspected that it is a cult war.’’
In Obite, four persons of the Greenlanders were allegedly killed by the Icelanders.
“At the moment, people are running away and nobody knows who is who. The cult boys entered the community by 8am and started shooting the people they described as their enemies.
“The Icelanders boys were the ones that shot the Degbam boys, but the fear now is that the Degbam cult group has written a letter to the community, asking the residents to flee because they are going to revenge,’’ a source said.
When contacted, the Caretaker Chairman of Ikwerre LGA, Mr. Samuel Nwanosike, confirmed the killings but said that the reports about the incident were overblown.
He insisted that the government had swiftly responded to the situation and restored normalcy in the area.
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