Just Like In Yemen, Humanitarian Missions To Biafra Lamented of War Crimes but United Nations Did Nothing.
By Chima Chibueze
For Family Writers
Throughout the abominable three years Biafran war, the Nigerian federal government blockaded Biafra, by land and sea, from the rest of the world. Not even humanitarian missions were allowed into the Biafran territory. Over two million Biafrans died of starvation alone as a result of the blockade.
The brave organizations that dared came to Biafra flew over and under cover of night; and even at that, some of them were gunned down by Nigerian antiaircraft. In fact, it was these antiaircraftattacks that forced these missions to fly by night. The Red Cross documented these incidents especially about their relief plane that were shot down by Nigeria. The few international missions that eventually made it to Biafra later suffered some tragedies at the hands of Nigerian bombers. These warplanes, flown exclusively by Egyptian pilots, bombed markets, residences, refugee camps, hospitals and schools—just like what Saudi Arabia does in Yemen.“An aircraft belonging to the Nigerian air force made a low level attack, dropping six bombs on the hospital and gunning it. Three people were killed and several other persons, including children and local Red Cross personnel, sustained wounds of varying severity” the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said, in 1968, about the bombing of the Awo Omamma hospital that was run by ICRC medical teams during the war.
In a report published by The Harvard Crimson in February 21, 1969, Mr Jean Mayer, who led a technical fact-finding mission to Biafra, said of their mission: "Although the chief of the Nigerian government personally guaranteed our plane safe conduct into Biafra, our mission was bombed every day of our visit”.
While all these atrocities were going on, and even after the self-immolation of Bruce Mayrock, the so much trusted and hallowed United Nations just sat down and watched (i.e. assuming it cared to notice at all).
At the end of the war, when Biafran forces surrendered to Nigeria, the Nigerian military Government, headed by General Yakubu Gowon, expelled and barred all foreign charities from Biafra. He was angry with them for defying him by bringing aids to dying and malnourished Biafran masses during the war. So, there wasn't any rehabilitation afterwards; and of course, there was no reconciliation either. Yet still, the UN didn't do anything. In fact, it turned a blind eye just like it does now.
Meanwhile, please, someone should tell Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter that pro-Biafran activists are not spam bots. We are people committed to the total freedom of our nation from a country that despises us so much. They can stop blocking and deactivating our accounts.
REFERENCES.
• International Committee of the Red Cross, Geneva, International Review of the Red Cross, January 1969, Ninth year - No. 94 (https://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/Military_Law/pdf/RC_Jan-1969.pdf). Pages 4, 14, 17. Retrieved on July 14, 2016.
• Marie-Luce Desgrandchamps, ‘Organising the unpredictable’: the Nigeria–Biafra war and its impact on the ICRC (https://www.icrc.org/en/download/file/13663/irrc-888-desgrandchamps.pdf). Pages 6, 22. Retrieved on July 14, 2016. International Review of the Red Cross, Volume 94 Number 888 Winter 2012. Pages 1414, 1430.
• Mayer Returns Safe From Biafra, Reports Two Million Face Death (http://www.thecrimson.com/article/1969/2/21/mayer-returns-safe-from-biafra-reports/), The Harvard Crimson, Inc. Retrieved on July 14, 2016.
By Chima Chibueze
For Family Writers
Throughout the abominable three years Biafran war, the Nigerian federal government blockaded Biafra, by land and sea, from the rest of the world. Not even humanitarian missions were allowed into the Biafran territory. Over two million Biafrans died of starvation alone as a result of the blockade.
The brave organizations that dared came to Biafra flew over and under cover of night; and even at that, some of them were gunned down by Nigerian antiaircraft. In fact, it was these antiaircraftattacks that forced these missions to fly by night. The Red Cross documented these incidents especially about their relief plane that were shot down by Nigeria. The few international missions that eventually made it to Biafra later suffered some tragedies at the hands of Nigerian bombers. These warplanes, flown exclusively by Egyptian pilots, bombed markets, residences, refugee camps, hospitals and schools—just like what Saudi Arabia does in Yemen.“An aircraft belonging to the Nigerian air force made a low level attack, dropping six bombs on the hospital and gunning it. Three people were killed and several other persons, including children and local Red Cross personnel, sustained wounds of varying severity” the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said, in 1968, about the bombing of the Awo Omamma hospital that was run by ICRC medical teams during the war.
In a report published by The Harvard Crimson in February 21, 1969, Mr Jean Mayer, who led a technical fact-finding mission to Biafra, said of their mission: "Although the chief of the Nigerian government personally guaranteed our plane safe conduct into Biafra, our mission was bombed every day of our visit”.
While all these atrocities were going on, and even after the self-immolation of Bruce Mayrock, the so much trusted and hallowed United Nations just sat down and watched (i.e. assuming it cared to notice at all).
At the end of the war, when Biafran forces surrendered to Nigeria, the Nigerian military Government, headed by General Yakubu Gowon, expelled and barred all foreign charities from Biafra. He was angry with them for defying him by bringing aids to dying and malnourished Biafran masses during the war. So, there wasn't any rehabilitation afterwards; and of course, there was no reconciliation either. Yet still, the UN didn't do anything. In fact, it turned a blind eye just like it does now.
Meanwhile, please, someone should tell Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter that pro-Biafran activists are not spam bots. We are people committed to the total freedom of our nation from a country that despises us so much. They can stop blocking and deactivating our accounts.
REFERENCES.
• International Committee of the Red Cross, Geneva, International Review of the Red Cross, January 1969, Ninth year - No. 94 (https://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/Military_Law/pdf/RC_Jan-1969.pdf). Pages 4, 14, 17. Retrieved on July 14, 2016.
• Marie-Luce Desgrandchamps, ‘Organising the unpredictable’: the Nigeria–Biafra war and its impact on the ICRC (https://www.icrc.org/en/download/file/13663/irrc-888-desgrandchamps.pdf). Pages 6, 22. Retrieved on July 14, 2016. International Review of the Red Cross, Volume 94 Number 888 Winter 2012. Pages 1414, 1430.
• Mayer Returns Safe From Biafra, Reports Two Million Face Death (http://www.thecrimson.com/article/1969/2/21/mayer-returns-safe-from-biafra-reports/), The Harvard Crimson, Inc. Retrieved on July 14, 2016.
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