RESIDENTS FLEE AS SOLDIERS BESIEGE RIVERS COMMUNITY OVER STOLEN RIFLES
Tension in Rundele community, Emohua LGA, Rivers State, as military men allegedly took the community residents hostage following the fracas that ensued between the soldiers and the local vigilante group leading to the seizure of military properties on 15th April 2023.
The information available indicates that some soldiers deployed to guard crude oil pipelines in the area allegedly ordered one of the artisanal refiners, a member of Onelga Security, Peace Advisory Committee (OSPAC), and a vigilante group in the area, to load the illegally-refined petroleum products into their waiting vehicle which he refused and was subsequently punished.
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During the torture, the incident traveled to the village and the other vigilante members. The vigilante groups mobilized in numbers and on approaching the scene, they were shooting their Pump Action guns sporadically which made some of the soldiers flee while they left behind two among them. The two soldiers were beaten and their rifles and uniforms seized.
Consequently, the soldiers were released without uniform and their rifles. This made the other soldiers furious, reinforced themselves, and stormed the community where they suspected that some of the youths involved hail from and arrested some of the youths.
Meanwhile, some indigenous residents of the community have fled the area as military men continue to hold the community hostage in search of the seized military properties.
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