Suspected IPOB fighters kill soldier who sneaked out to attend party

A Nigerian Army soldier attached to Operation Udoka has been killed by suspected members of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra after sneaking out of his duty post to attend a party in Anambra State.

The incident was said to have occurred on the evening of Saturday, May 18, 2025, at the Forward Operating Base in Uli.

It was gathered that the soldier had attended the event — a strippers’ party titled “Ladies’ Jamboree” — while wearing his military camouflage uniform.

According to a security source, the soldier was discovered missing during a tactical operation.

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The source said, “It was during a tactical operation that it was discovered the soldier was missing. He was later found to have sneaked out of the base without permission to attend a strippers’ party at a nearby hotel, in uniform. It was there that he was accosted and fatally shot by suspected IPOB/ESN fighters. His lifeless body, along with that of a baby, was later recovered at the scene by troops.

“His weapon has been retrieved and is currently in military custody.”

Operation Udoka is a Defence Headquarters-led operation and efforts to reach the Director, Defence Media Operations, Maj. Gen. Markus Kangye, were unsuccessful.

His phone number was switched off, and he had yet to respond to a message sent to him as of the time of filing this report.

Reports has it that the killing is the latest in a series of targeted attacks on security personnel in the South-East region, where IPOB and ESN have been accused of carrying out violent campaigns against state forces.