Delta killings: We did not chop off soldiers heads, remove their hearts, or dismember them — Ararile

According to Punch, the Ovie of Umiaghwa Abraka Kingdom, Lucky Ararile, has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to order the military to withdraw from the troubled Okuama community in Delta State. He condemned the killing of 17 military personnel during a peace mission, describing it as regrettable and against the cultural norms of the Niger Delta ethnic groups.

Ararile emphasized that the desecration of bodies and destruction in Okuama was not in line with the values of the region. He called for residents to return and rebuild their lives, while urging security operatives to adhere strictly to their roles to prevent such incidents in the future.

The traditional ruler said, “The way the soldiers were killed was not in tandem with the culture of Urhobo and other ethnic groups in the Niger Delta.

“No ethnic group in the Niger Delta has it as a culture to desecrate the bodies of the dead.

“We did not chop off soldier’s head, remove their hearts, or dismember them.

“Nevertheless, residents need to return back and try to get their lives back and start rebuilding.