BREAKING: President Buhari Reacts to Death of Chief of Army Staff, Others

BREAKING: President Buhari Reacts to Death of Chief of Army Staff, Others

- President Buhari has described the death of the COAS, Ibrahim Attahiru, and other military officers as a mortal blow to Nigeria's underbelly

- The Nigerian leader sent condolences to the families of the deceased, the military, and Nigerians in general

- Attahiru and some military officers died in a military plane crash on Friday evening, May 21

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President Muhammadu Buhari is deeply saddened over the air crash that claimed the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, and other military officers.

The Nigerian leader's reaction is contained in a statement released by presidential spokesman, Femi Adesina late Friday, May 21.

President Buhari Reacts to Death of Chief of Army Staff, Others
Late Chief of Army Staff Major General Ibrahim Attahiru seen at the theatre command operations Lafiya Dole headquarters in Maiduguri, Nigeria, on January 31, 2021. Photo credit: Audu Marte/AFP
Source: Getty Images

The president condoled with families of the deceased, the military, and Nigerians in general, describing them as “heroes who paid the ultimate price for peace and security in the land.”

While praying that God receives the souls of the patriots, President Buhari said the crash “is one mortal blow to our underbelly, at a time our armed forces are poised to end the security challenges facing the country.”

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The president pledged that the departed would not die in vain.

Attahiru and some senior military officers died in a military plane crash in Kaduna on Friday evening, May 21.

While some media reports claimed a total of eight persons died in the crash, others put the number of casualty at 12.

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Meanwhile, Attahiru who is from Kaduna state has become the second Nigerian Chief of Army Staff to die in a plane crash while in office.

The first was Lt. Colonel Joseph Akahan who was Chief of Army Staff from May 1967 until May 1968, when he was killed in a helicopter crash during the Nigerian Civil War. Akahan, from Gboko local government area of Benue state attended Government College Keffi where he obtained his Cambridge School Certificate (1952–1956).

He trained as an officer cadet at the RWAFF Training School Teshi, Ghana (1957–1958) and the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, United Kingdom (1958–1960). He was commissioned on 23 July 1960.

Source: Legit.ng

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