An airstrike by a fighter jet belonging to the Nigerian Air Force has killed six children in Niger state, Daily Trust has reported.
The victims are between the ages of 5 and 12.
The incident happened in the Kuregba community of Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State.
Daily Trust revealed that the air component of the Joint Security Operatives mistakenly struck the community while trying to bombard the hideouts of terrorists in part of the local government.
Residents told Daily Trust that several houses were also destroyed by the airstrike that was conducted on Wednesday.
The spokesman of the Coalition of Shiroro Associations, Salis Mohammed Sabo, said the incident happened in the morning when the children were fetching water from a motorised borehole within the Kurebe community.
Sabo said a father lost two of his daughters and two granddaughters to the strike, adding that the community where the airstrike took place was not the hideout of the bandits.
“The terrorists’ camps are well known. The terrorists around the community are of two groups, with two different camps. One links up with the community through Unguwan Zomo, the other through Kwantan Yashi area,” he said.
