Bandits Kill Two, Abduct Many in Sokoto Community
Two people have been killed and several others abducted in Bargaja village, Isa Local Government Area of Sokoto State, following a bandit attack suspected to be linked to gunmen loyal to bandit leader, Bello Turji. The spokesman for the Sokoto State Police Command, DSP Ahmed Rufai, confirmed in an interview with our correspondent on Tuesday that the attack occurred on Monday. He said a detailed account of the incident would be provided once the Divisional Police Officer in the area submits a field report. “Two were killed, and some people were kidnapped, but we don’t yet have the exact number. “We will get fuller details from the DPO of the local government,” Rufai said. Security sources and residents also reported that Bargaja had been attacked days earlier, suggesting repeated raids in the area along the Sokoto–Zamfara axis. Residents said the attack triggered fresh displacement, with villagers fleeing to Isa town and neighbouring communities. Isa, Sabon Birni and other parts of eastern Sokoto have continued to experience attacks, kidnappings and displacement despite assurances by security agencies. Over the weekend, residents reported the arrival of displaced persons from Tidibale ward into Isa town. Residents said the movement of displaced civilians has become increasingly frequent in recent months as more farming and pastoral settlements come under threat. “The whole of Tidibale ward has been devastated by Bello Turji,” a resident alleged in a written statement circulated to journalists. He appealed for urgent intervention from federal, state and local authorities, warning that civilians were fast becoming “refugees in their own land.” As of the time of filing this report, neither the Sokoto State Government nor the Isa Local Government Council had issued a formal response to the situation. A security analyst, Bashar Altine, who hails from Isa LGA, described the situation as “deeply worrying,” noting that many displaced residents are living in public schools and temporary shelters in Isa town. Others, he said, have relocated to neighbouring Sabon Birni, while some have crossed into the Niger Republic in search of safety. Altine also said Turji “is very much alive” and continues to operate actively within parts of Isa and surrounding communities. The renewed attacks in Isa come amid wider concerns over the persistence of banditry in the North-West, where communities have endured years of farm disruptions, mass displacement, school abductions and a shrinking civic presence due to insecurity.
