Zamfara, Kebbi, Niger worst hit as gunmen kill 1,031 abduct 390 in one month – Report

A total of 1,031 persons were reported killed, while 390 others were abducted in 205 incidents recorded in 34 states across Nigeria in June 2021, according a report by Beacon Consulting, a security risk management and intelligence company.

According to report, Zamfara, Kebbi, and Niger were worst hit as a total of 275 persons were killed in Zamfara State, 93 in Kebbi State, and 91 in Niger State during the month under review.

The report titled: “Nigeria Security Report” obtained recorded various cases of insecurity in June; from armed attacks, armed clashes, mob violence, social disruptions, to other violent crimes.

In 127 Local Government Areas across the 34 states of the federation under review with the exception of Bauchi and Gombe states, various incidents of casualties and kidnappings were reported with the majority of the cases recorded in areas bedeviled by ‘rural banditry.’

The report said nine persons were killed and 20 others abducted in four attacks recorded in the month by Boko Haram and other terror-related groups.

Also, 18 persons were killed in 12 attacks attributed to the Eastern Security Network and the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) in the same period.

A breakdown of the incidents by regions shows that the Northwest recorded the highest occurrence of insecurity casualties with 416 killings and 280 abductions in 28 Local Government Areas, followed by 218 fatalities and 24 abductions in 27 Local Government Areas in the North-central.

A total of 188 fatalities and 22 abductions were reported in the Northeast within the period under review, while in the Southeast, 117 cases of killings and 26 abductions were reported, in 20 Local Government Areas of Enugu, Anambra, Abia and Ebonyi states in incidents of armed attacks, armed clashes, social disruptions, violent crimes and airstrikes/bomb attacks.

The Southwest also had 74 fatalities and 27 abductions from 30 Local Government Areas of Oyo, Osun, Ekiti, Ondo, Ogun, and Lagos state, with the South-south recording the lowest amongst the southern regions with 18 fatalities and 11 abductions in 15 Local Government Areas of Edo, Rivers, Delta, Cross River, and Akwa Ibom states.

A total of 275 persons were killed in various attacks in Zamfara State, Northwest, where activities of terror groups have pauperised most rural dwellers; there were no abductions recorded. But in neighbouring Kebbi State, 119 abductions were recorded with 93 fatalities.

Kaduna State recorded 26 deaths with 157 abductions, while Katsina State recorded six deaths with three abductions. Sokoto State had 15 fatalities with zero abduction, Kano and Jigawa states recorded one death each with no abductions.

Niger State in the North-central, according to the breakdown, had the highest incidents of 91 deaths and three abductions, while Benue and Plateau states had only one recorded case of kidnap with 72 and 27 fatalities respectively.

Kwara State recorded 11 deaths with no abduction, while Kogi and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) recorded three deaths and 10 abductions respectively.

According to the report, the activities of non-state actors popularly referred to as ‘bandits’ continued unabated in the Northwest and North-central despite ongoing security forces operations.

“In the reporting period, the violent attacks on mainly rural communities were sustained in Kaduna, Katsina, Niger, Sokoto, and Zamfara states and mass abduction of students in schools in Kebbi, Kaduna, and Niger states, as well as families of staff, workers and patients at a medical institution in Kaduna State,” the report read.

“We also monitored the setting up of illegal checkpoints, where these non-state actors abducted commuters and in one incident along the Kaduna – Kachia road, killed some of their victims for unknown reasons. We monitored increasing indications of the convergence between armed groups in the northeast and the ones in the North Central and North West.”

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In the Northeast, a total of 101 fatalities were recorded in eight Local Government Areas of Borno, Yobe, Adamawa, and Taraba states. Some of the incidences mentioned in the report in the region were Boko Haram attack on a community and killing of police officers as well as the burning of UN facilities in Yobe State; the killing of over 50 ISWAP terrorists in Borno and the killing of six ISWAP terrorists in Dikwa, Borno State.

Also highlighted in the report was the storming of Gadawaluwol village in Adamawa State where one person was killed, as well as the killing by suspected criminal herders of a father and two sons in Galang Jauro village in Taraba State.

The report, obtained by Daily Trust, warned that criminals and criminal activities, including kidnapping for ransom, violent and petty crimes, as well as home invasions, are likely to continue in the short and medium terms due to the progressive worsening of the economic circumstances in the country and rising inflation.

“There will be a continuation of non-state actors’ activities challenging the supremacy of the state’s monopoly of force and sustenance of their attacks on communities including kidnapping for ransom and raids. This, in turn, will push communities to evolve self-help initiatives including protests, where they block access routes and arm themselves,” the report reads.

“The deteriorating security situation will continue to fuel political rancor and the exchange between the ruling party and its members and between it and opposition parties, social upheaval especially protests by Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and political groups hiding behind civil activists will emerge as a major driver of security challenges as the effect of the economic downturn forces governments at the federal and state levels to take measures to manage these impacts.”

“In the Northeast, the non-state actors waging a terror war and the ongoing military operation Hadin Kai will continue the armed conflict. The restructuring and consolidation of ISWAP will translate into bolder attacks and other activities of the group. This will mean a continuation of armed attacks and counter attacks as well as illegal checkpoints mounted along major travel routes particularly in Borno state but in the border towns of Yobe and Adamawa states.”