The remains of the 16 northerners lynched by a mob in Uromi, Edo State, were on Saturday interred amid tears from the Hausa community.

The victims, travelling from Port Harcourt in Rivers to Kano for the sallah celebration, were killed in Udune Efandion in Uromi, Edo State, last week Thursday.

Peoples Gazette gathered that the deceased persons were killed on the suspicion that they were kidnappers. 

A viral video of the victims released on social media showed how they were burnt alive, with their killing sparking outrage and condemnation. 

The members of the Hausa community on Saturday converged to pay their last respects to the victims. 

The funeral rites for the victims, whose corpses were wrapped beside a large grave by the Hausa community, were captured in a video posted by a security analyst, Zagazola Makama. 

“Assalamualaikum, this time, we will pray for the bodies of our brothers who were killed for us—those who were massacred. May God bless them with mercy, forgive them, and accept their martyrdom for the sake of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh),” a voice behind the video said. 

Anselm Aidenojie, the Ojuromi of the Uromi kingdom, who visited the Hausa community during the burial, vehemently condemned the killings, advising against any reprisal.

Mr Aidenojie said those responsible for the murder would be brought to book by the security agencies. 

“They have been buried, and hopefully, this will never happen again in our community or anywhere else,” he said. 

President Bola Tinubu, the Northern Governors Forum (NGF), Amnesty International, different Muslim organisations, and concerned Nigerians have condemned the gruesome killing of the northerners.

They asked security agencies in Edo to fish out the perpetrators, conduct a thorough investigation, and bring them to justice. 

Edo State Governor Monday Okpebholo has also ordered a full-scale investigation into the killing of the hunters. 

During his visit to the Hausa community in the state, Mr Okpebholo described their killing as barbaric.

The governor, in a statement by his spokesman, Fred Itua, after the visit,  assured them of justice. 

“The Governor directed the state police command and other security agencies to conduct thorough and speedy investigations into the matter and bring those found culpable to book. He also charged the community to work with the security agencies to fish out the culprits,” the statement partly read.