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Tag: GENERAL IRONSI

Operation ‘Aure’: The Northern Military Counter-Rebellion of July 1966 (VI)  

Once the building was surrounded and the 106 mm gun positioned in support, Danjuma came under pressure from the boys on the ground to proceed with the operation. There were fears, based on myths acquired in the Congo, that General Ironsi was assisted by "juju" and that he could disappear at anytime using his "crocodile". Junior officers who had come to join the party urged immediate attack, some even suggesting a repeat performance of the Nzeogwu assault on the Nassarawa Lodge in Kaduna in January. They wanted the 106 mm weapon used to bring down the complex. Danjuma resisted the pressure. 

Operation ‘Aure’: The Northern Military Counter-Rebellion of July 1966 (V)  

After being hunted down, those who were spared the Premier's Lodge 'pre-operative' treatment were simply trucked out to mile 18 on the Kaduna-Jos Road where they were shot (allegedly under Captain Ahmadu Yakubu's supervision) and then reportedly robbed of personal belongings. The process was not totally successful, however, because thankfully, some who feigned death were able to crawl away to safety. Interestingly, others were protected by Captain Swanton and the same RSM Ahmadu Bello who had earlier set Okoro up for his execution at the outset of Kaduna operations. When guardrooms were too congested or unsafe, eastern, (particularly Igbo) soldiers and officers were taken to the Kaduna Prison for safe keeping.