Invasion of Port Harcourt
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (September 2012) |
| Invasion of Port Harcourt | |
|---|---|
| Part of Biafra | |
| Result | Nigerian victory |
Nigeria
Philemon Shande
Ipoola Alani Akinrinade
Ted Hamman
Ogbugo Kalu
The Invasion of Port Harcourt (March 8 – May 24, 1968) was a military conflict between Nigerian and Biafran military forces.
Background
In the mid-1960s, there was a military coup led by Major Nzeogwu that overthrew the democratic government which had lost credibility due to rigged elections and ensuing violence. The coup was suppressed but the mostly Igbo coup plotters were not brought to justice by the military junta that took power. The coup seemed ethnically motivated as most of the people killed were Hausa/Fulani and Yoruba, and the military junta was headed by an Igbo man, Maj. Gen. Aguyi Ironsi. There was a counter coup six months later and revenge killings of the Igbo in Hausaland. This led to an exodus of the Igbo back to the southeast and an unfortunate series of events that culminated in secession and the Biafra war.
Before hostilities broke out, the Nigerian Navy was ordered to enforce a blockade around Port Harcourt and the mouth of the Bonny River.[1] The capture of Calabar and other coastal cities by October 1967 left Port Harcourt's airport the only means of international communication and travel for Biafra, though the Biafrans in turn spent time devising other ad hoc air strips out of old roadways.[2] To prevent a federal advance up the river, the Biafrans scuttled a barge and dumped several vehicles into it.[3]
Battle
Following the defeat in the Cross River region, the Biafrans regrouped the remnants of their troops and created the Biafran 12th Division under the command of Lt. Col. Festus Akagha. The 12th Division was divided into the 56th Brigade stationed in
Aftermath
The capture of Port Harcourt completely denied Biafra access to the sea.
A large segment of the Igbo population of the city fled in advance of its capture by federal forces into the Biafran interior, abandoning their homes and valuables. Some of those who remained were killed by troops or non-Igbo residents.[7] Many Ijaw people welcomed the arrival of the federal troops and lay claim to some of vacated properties and filled local leadership positions. Following the end of the war, Igbos returned to the city. Many Igbo professionals were needed to manage the oil industry and consequently the oil companies housed them in protected areas and pressured the Nigerian government to guarantee their safety.[8] To promote reconciliation, the Nigerian government guaranteed all Igbos that they could reclaim property they had abandoned during the war upon their return. This proved difficult in Port Harcourt, as the Rivers State government defied federal authorities and refused to evict squatters on Igbo properties.[9] State courts often sided with the squatters, and the Igbo owners perceived this as a state policy of retribution towards them.[10]
References
- ^ ISSN 1932-6556.
- ^ Venter 2016, p. 209.
- ^ "The Little Country That Won't Give Up". Time. December 8, 1967. Retrieved March 30, 2024.
- ^ Stremlau 2015, p. 165.
- ^ Venter 2016, p. 276.
- ^ "Nigerian Civil War: How Adekunle, Obasanjo caused mass killings". Vanguard News. 2010-06-18. Retrieved 2020-05-23.
- ^ Daly 2020, p. 54.
- ^ Daly 2020, pp. 162–163.
- ^ Daly 2020, pp. 54, 163–164.
- ^ Daly 2020, p. 164.
Works cited
- Daly, Samuel Fury Childs (2020). A History of the Republic of Biafra: Law, Crime, and the Nigerian Civil War. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781108895958.
- Stremlau, John J. (2015). The International Politics of the Nigerian Civil War, 1967-1970. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 9781400871285.
- Venter, Al J. (2016). Biafra's War 1967-1970 : A Tribal Conflict in Nigeria That Left a Million Dead. Helion & Company. ISBN 9781910294697.