At least three people have been killed in Aba, Abia State, in clashes that started at the popular Ariaria Market.
The clashes began in the afternoon mostly between Igbo traders and their Hausa counterparts, they said.
According to eyewitness that spoke to Premium times, one witness said the crisis started after a member of the Hausa community stabbed and killed an Igbo trader who reprimanded him for urinating near his store. Other Igbo traders rounded the assailant and lynched him, the witness said
But other witnesses and residents said news of the incident spread to other parts of the town and a mob gathered and attacked the Hausa community around the abattoir located at Ogbor Hill area of Aba.
“From that point matters degenerated. Soldiers in nearby barrack are shooting and at least one Igbo trader was hit and killed by a bullet,” the witness recounted.
According to a Facebook user who was giving live updates of what was going on she said while the soldiers shot at the boys, the bullets turned to sand.
It took the efforts of security men to quell what would have been a deadly riot between Igbos as Hausa/Fulani Cattle rearers at Water Side Ogbor Hill.
An Eyewitness narrated that the clash started when an Hausa cattle rearer allegedly stabbed an Igbo man after some slight quarrel, this led to anger among the Igbo people who saw what happened.
"They killed two Hausa men at the spot, others scampered to the nearest police station, as the slaughter boys chased them with matchetes and cutlasses." he said.
The young Igbo man who was stabbed by the Hausa man, was reported to have died some moments later as he was stabbed in the heart, the news of his death made the slaughter boys to organize and head to Mosque street Aba.
As at the time of filing this report, the Hausa community in Aba has been deserted over what they feared as bigger reprisals by Ogbor Hill slaughter boys.
Another eye witness told our correspondent on the phone - "There is chaos everywhere, from St. Michael's Aba we didnt know what happened, all we saw were group of people, some on foot and inside bus heading towards Mosque, with dangerous weapons, I have to run very far because even the security men could not stop them and there were gun shots everywhere".
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