“This is highly ridiculous as the Navy seems to be telling the world that it does not know the difference between testing weapon and attacking enemies. How on earth can testing the military weaponry result to sacking an entire community, which has inflicted grievous injuries on the innocent and peace-loving settlers in the Island? “This is a manifestation of the Federal Government’s agenda to wipe out the Niger Delta communities from planet earth ostensibly to allow it have free access to the oil. We hope that the world is seeing these systematic invasions of Niger Delta communities whose offence is that they have oil in their lands,” it said. The group asserted: “We can safely say that a silent genocide is going on in the Niger Delta. For the military to absolve itself of any culpability, let it set up an independent panel of inquiry to ascertain the truth. Let those unprofessional and trigger-happy military men be brought to book.” On the bombardments of Okosugbene settlement in Burutu area by the men of Operation Delta Safe, the group said: “The military ought to have adhered to the rule of engagement. Its operation has hospitalised more than three persons, who are innocent fisher men and women.” “From our findings, Okosugbene is known to be a fishing camp which has been in existence from time immemorial. If there is any militant camp close to the village, the military ought to have separated the militants camp from the village.
The casualties of the military bombardments of the village are women and their children. “We have reliably gathered that Master Wisdom Ekeremo, 5 years and Miss Paulina Maika were hit by the bullets of the invading military, while Mrs Apunu Akaraowei is missing. The entire fishing village has been brought to rubble by the aerial bombardments. We have not heard of any militant casualty, which ought to have been the target of the military, the group asserted.
