The Togolese armed forces said on Thursday they were responsible for a recent explosion that killed seven civilians and wounded two others, after mistaking them for jihadists. The explosion occurred in the Tône prefecture, near the border with Burkina Faso, where a Sahelian jihadist insurgency threatens to spread to coastal West African countries.
In a statement on Sunday, the military said it had opened an investigation “to determine the circumstances of this explosion and to identify the perpetrators.” The chief of staff of the Togolese armed forces, General Dadja Maganawe, concluded on Thursday that a plane had mistakenly targeted civilians.
“On the night of July 9-10, around 1:30 am, an explosion caused several victims in the village of Margba, in the Tône prefecture,” it said in a statement.
“Its deep sorrow at this tragedy”
General Maganawe said the army had received “consistent intelligence about threats of infiltration by armed gangs intent on carrying out terrorist attacks” against local communities.
“Faced with the imminence of danger,” he said, the commander in charge of an operation codenamed Koundjoare “has reinforced ground and air surveillance and control of the indicated area.”
“It was during these operations that a night patrol plane inadvertently targeted a group of people whom it mistook (for) a column of jihadis on the move,” General Maganawe said.
The Togolese armed forces expressed “their deep sorrow for this tragedy”, renewed “their most sincere condolences to the bereaved families” and wished the wounded a speedy recovery. General Maganawe added that the armed forces “will do everything possible to prevent these kinds of tragedies from happening in the future.”
Last month, Togo declared a state of emergency in its northern prefectures due to the threat of Islamist attacks. Eight Togolese soldiers were killed in May in an attack in the region.
Source: BFM TV
