A Nigerian military attack mistakenly bombed a religious gathering and killed civilians

By CHINEDU ASADU
Associated Press

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Nigerian government and military officials say an army attack that used drones to target rebels instead killed an unspecified number of civilians gathered for a religious celebration. The attack was the latest in recent errant bombings of local residents in Nigeria’s troubled regions. The governor of Kaduna state said on Monday that Muslims observing the holiday celebrating the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad, Mawlid al-Nabi, the previous night were “mistakenly killed and many others were wounded” by a drone “targeting terrorists and bandits.” Officials didn’t provide the number of casualties. Amnesty International’s Nigeria office said 120 people were killed in the attack, citing reports of its workers and volunteers in the area.