|
Operation Tail-Wind
{{Campaignbox Biafran War Operation Tail-Wind (January 7 – 12, 1970) was the final military conflict between Nigeria and Biafra. The operation took place in the towns of Owerri and Uli, both of which were captured by Nigerian forces. The operation ended with General Odumegwu Ojukwu fleeing to the Ivory Coast and then president of Biafra Philip Effiong surrendering to Olusegun Obasanjo. Background On May 30, 1967, Odumegwu Ojukwu declared the Republic of Biafra independent from Nigeria. For a month Nigeria claimed that Biafra was a part of Nigeria and it would stay so. It was not until July 6, 1967, when Nigeria invaded Biafra at the Battle of Nsukka. Biafra invaded Nigeria in August 1967 but were intercepted by Yakubu Gowon on August 21, 1967, and were repelled back at the Battle of Ore. Biafra kept a stiff resistance until their capital was taken in October 1967 at the Fall of Enugu. The Biafran capital was moved to Umuahia where it stayed for another 2 years. Nigeria cap ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Biafran War
The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Nigerian–Biafran War or the Biafran War, was a civil war fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a secessionist state which had declared its independence from Nigeria in 1967. Nigeria was led by General Yakubu Gowon, while Biafra was led by Lieutenant Colonel Chukwuemeka "Emeka" Odumegwu Ojukwu. Biafra represented the nationalist aspirations of the Igbo ethnic group, whose leadership felt they could no longer coexist with the federal government dominated by the interests of the Muslim Hausa-Fulanis of Northern Nigeria. The conflict resulted from political, economic, ethnic, cultural and religious tensions which preceded the United Kingdom's formal decolonization of Nigeria from 1960 to 1963. Immediate causes of the war in 1966 included a military coup, a counter-coup, and anti-Igbo pogroms in Northern Nigeria. Control over the lucrative oil production in the Niger Delta also played a vi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Ore
The Midwest Invasion of 1967 (August 9 – September 20, 1967) codenamed Operation Torch. was a military operation between Nigerian and Biafran military forces during the Nigerian Civil War. The invasion began on August 9 when 3,000 Biafran soldiers led by General Victor Banjo crossed the River Niger Bridge into Asaba. Upon reaching Agbor, the Biafrans split up. With the 12th Battalion moving west capturing Benin City and Ore, the 18th Battalion swung south, taking Warri, Sapele and Ughelli, while the 13th Battalion headed north for Auchi, Agenebode and Okene. Simultaneously, a plot to capture Mid-Western Governor David Ejoor at his home in Benin failed. Nevertheless, the Biafrans, meeting virtually no resistance, had seized the entire Mid-Western Region in less than 12 hours. Plans were drawn for the 12th Battalion to continue its advance towards Lagos and Ibadan. However, it was cripplingly delayed due to arguments between Ojukwu and Victor Banjo on whom to appoint a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battles Involving Nigeria
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force commitment. An engagement with only limited commitment between the forces and without decisive results is sometimes called a skirmish. The word "battle" can also be used infrequently to refer to an entire operational campaign, although this usage greatly diverges from its conventional or customary meaning. Generally, the word "battle" is used for such campaigns if referring to a protracted combat encounter in which either one or both of the combatants had the same methods, resources, and strategic objectives throughout the encounter. Some prominent examples of this would be the Battle of the Atlantic, Battle of Britain, and Battle of Stalingrad, all in World War II. Wars and military campaigns are guided by military strategy, whereas bat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nigerian Civil War
The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Nigerian–Biafran War or the Biafran War, was a civil war fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a secessionist state which had declared its independence from Nigeria in 1967. Nigeria was led by General Yakubu Gowon, while Biafra was led by Lieutenant Colonel C. Odumegwu Ojukwu, Chukwuemeka "Emeka" Odumegwu Ojukwu. Biafra represented the nationalist aspirations of the Igbo people, Igbo ethnic group, whose leadership felt they could no longer coexist with the Federal government of Nigeria, federal government dominated by the interests of the Muslim Hausa-Fulanis of Northern Nigeria. The conflict resulted from political, economic, ethnic, cultural and religious tensions which preceded the United Kingdom's formal decolonization of Nigeria from 1960 to 1963. Immediate causes of the war in 1966 included 1966 Nigerian coup d'état, a military coup, 1966 Nigerian counter-coup, a counter-coup, and 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cameroon
Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Its coastline lies on the Bight of Biafra, part of the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean. Due to its strategic position at the crossroads between West Africa and Central Africa, it has been categorized as being in both camps. Its nearly 27 million people speak 250 native languages. Early inhabitants of the territory included the Sao civilisation around Lake Chad, and the Baka hunter-gatherers in the southeastern rainforest. Portuguese explorers reached the coast in the 15th century and named the area ''Rio dos Camarões'' (''Shrimp River''), which became ''Cameroon'' in English. Fulani soldiers founded the Adamawa Emirate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1966 Nigerian Coup D'état
The 1966 Nigerian coup d'état began on 15 January 1966, when mutinous Nigerian soldiers led by Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu and Emmanuel Ifeajuna killed 22 people including the Prime Minister of Nigeria, many senior politicians, many senior Army officers (including their wives), and sentinels on protective duty. The coup plotters attacked the cities of Kaduna, Ibadan, and Lagos while also blockading the Niger and Benue River within a two-day span of time before the coup plotters were subdued. The General Officer Commanding the Nigerian Army, Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi, was compelled to take control of the government of a country in upheaval, inadvertently putting Nigeria's nascent democracy on hold. His ascendancy to power was deemed a conspiracy by the coup plotters, who were mainly Igbo officers, to pave the way for General Aguiyi-Ironsi to be Head of State of Nigeria. Consequently, the retaliatory events by Northern members of the Nigerian Army that led to deaths of many innocent Igb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national republics; in practice, both its government and its economy were highly centralized until its final years. It was a one-party state governed by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, with the city of Moscow serving as its capital as well as that of its largest and most populous republic: the Russian SFSR. Other major cities included Leningrad (Russian SFSR), Kiev (Ukrainian SSR), Minsk ( Byelorussian SSR), Tashkent (Uzbek SSR), Alma-Ata (Kazakh SSR), and Novosibirsk (Russian SFSR). It was the largest country in the world, covering over and spanning eleven time zones. The country's roots lay in the October Revolution of 1917, when the Bolsheviks, under the leadership of Vladimir Lenin, overthrew the Russian Provisional Government ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Capture Of Owerri
The siege of Owerri, (October 15, 1968 – April 25, 1969), was a military conflict between Nigerian and Biafran forces. The capture was a major victory for the Biafrans because the victory opened up telephone lines, enhanced road telecommunications, and showed that with stiff resistance, Biafra could defeat Nigerian forces. Prelude In July 1968, commander of the 3rd Marine Commando (3MCDO), Colonel Benjamin Adekunle began making plans for an invasion of Aba, Owerri, and Umuahia in a military operation he nicknamed Operation OAU. Adekunle stated that he would be able to capture all three cities in two weeks. Adekunle's strategy was to surround a city and starve it into submission before attacking its weakened defenders. After 12 days of violent fighting in Aba, the 3MCDO managed to capture the city on September 14, followed by Owerri on September 16. When the 3MCDO was pushed back at Umuahia, the Nigerians retreated to Owerri, where they set up defenses in and around the city. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Operation OAU
Operation OAU (2 September – 15 October 1968) was a battle between Nigerian 3 Marine Commando Division (3MCDO) and Biafran 12 Division in modern day south-eastern Nigeria. Operation OAU was an intermittent battle that may have resulted in over 25,000 deaths on both sides. Although the Biafran soldiers were outnumbered, they were able to retain control of Umuahia and eventually recapture the cities of Owerri and Aba. Prelude In April 1968, the Commander of the 3 MCDO General Benjamin Adekunle began drawing up plans to invade the Biafran heartland and capture all remaining major cities. On 14 April the Nigerian 3rd Marine Division under Gen. Adekunle made their way north from their position in Calabar to Ikot Ekpene where they managed to capture the city after a stubborn Biafran defense. For 36 days the 3rd Division pushed their way west through the Niger Delta and reached the area surrounding Port Harcourt on 19 May. The Nigerian Army and Navy bombarded the city before carryi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aba, Abia
Aba is a city in the southeast of Nigeria and the commercial center of Abia State. Upon the creation of Abia state in 1991, Aba was divided into two local government areas namely; Aba South and Aba North. Aba south is the main city centre and the heartbeat of Abia State, south-east Nigeria. It is located on the Aba River. Aba is made up of many villages such as; Aba-Ukwu, Eziukwu-Aba, Obuda-Aba, Umuokpoji-Aba and other villages from Ohazu merged due to administrative convenience. Aba was established by the Ngwa clan of Igbo People of Nigeria as a market town and then later a military post was placed there by the British colonial administration in 1901. It lies along the west bank of the Aba River, and is at the intersection of roads leading to Port Harcourt, Owerri, Umuahia, Ikot Ekpene, and Ikot-Abasi. The city became a collecting point for agricultural products following the British made railway running through it to Port Harcourt. Aba is a major urban settlement and co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Benjamin Adekunle
Benjamin Adesanya Maja Adekunle (26 June 1936 – 13 September 2014) was a Nigerian Army Brigadier and Civil War commander. Early years and background Adekunle was born in Kaduna. His father was a native of Ogbomosho, while his mother was of the Bachama ethnicity. He underwent secondary education at the government college, Okene (now known as Abdul Aziz Atta Memorial College, Okene, in present-day Kogi State). He enlisted in the Nigerian Army in 1958 shortly after completing his school certificate examinations. He passed the army selection examinations and thereafter was despatched to the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in the UK, the British Army's initial officer entry academy. He was commissioned 2nd Lieutenant on December 15, 1960. As a platoon commander, he served in Kasai Province of Congo with the 1st Battalion, Queen's Own Nigeria Regiment during his first ONUC UN peace keeping tour of duty. In 1962, Lt. Adekunle became Aide-de-Camp to the governor of the eastern re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Capture Of Port Harcourt
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. The capture of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
