What happened during Nigeria’s countercoup of July 1966?

In July 1966, northern officers in the Nigerian army staged a countercoup against the military administration of Maj. Gen. Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi.12

This event followed a period of intense political instability that began with a January 1966 coup, during which Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa and other leaders were murdered. Aguiyi-Ironsi’s subsequent attempt to replace Nigeria's regional structure with a unitary government triggered anti-Igbo riots in the north, as the military became increasingly divided along ethnic lines and the leaders of the January coup were accused of favoring Igbo domination.123

During the July countercoup, Aguiyi-Ironsi was assassinated, and Lieut. Col. (later Gen.) Yakubu Gowon rose to power. The aftermath of this transition was marked by further intercommunal violence, including ethnic massacres in October, which ultimately contributed to the collapse of efforts to maintain national unity and the subsequent outbreak of the Nigerian Civil War.12