In January 1967, military leaders met in Aburi, Ghana, in a last-ditch effort to prevent war. Ojukwu argued for a loose confederation, which Gowon initially agreed to. However, upon returning to Lagos, federal civil servants advised Gowon to reject the terms, arguing it would lead to Nigeria’s disintegration. The collapse of the Accord made war inevitable.

In October 1967, Federal troops entered the town of Asaba (in the Mid-Western Region). Believing the townsfolk harbored Biafran sympathies, soldiers gathered the men and boys in a public square and executed hundreds of them. It remains one of the darkest and most controversial atrocities of the war.

The FMG’s total blockade cut off food and medical supplies to Biafra, leading to mass starvation, characterized by images of children with Kwashiorkor. In response, international groups (like Joint Church Aid) organized massive, dangerous night-time airlifts into Uli airstrip, defying the blockade to deliver relief materials.

Following the surrender, General Gowon declared there were no victors and no vanquished. He instituted a policy of “Reconciliation, Rehabilitation, and Reconstruction.” While this prevented immediate post-war reprisals, critics argue the economic policies that followed (such as the £20 flat bank account policy for former Biafrans) deeply impoverished the East.