Tinubu orders security chiefs to hunt killers after 42 villagers died in Niger State attacks
A Night of Terror in Agwara and Borgu
Fresh violence swept through Niger State over the weekend as armed attackers stormed villages in Agwara and Borgu local government areas, killing no fewer than 42 residents and abducting an unspecified number of people, many of them women and children.
Local accounts indicate that Kasuwa Daji, near Papiri, bore the brunt of the assault, with gunmen arriving on motorcycles, opening fire on villagers, torching a popular market and looting food supplies before retreating into nearby forest corridors.
Residents described hours of unchecked violence, with some communities reporting that the attackers operated without resistance for nearly two hours.
The attack on Kasuwan-Daji is the latest in violent attacks against villages in Niger state
Conflicting Death Toll, Same Grim Reality
While community sources and church officials placed the death toll at over 40, the Niger State Police Command confirmed that more than 30 people were killed during the raid.
Police spokesperson Wasiu Abiodun said joint security teams had been deployed to the affected areas, adding that operations were ongoing to rescue abducted victims.
“These terrorists have tested the resolve of our country and its people,”
Pres. BOLA Tinubu
Despite discrepancies in numbers, officials agree on one fact: the attack represents one of the deadliest single incidents in Niger State in recent months.
Tinubu Issues Marching Orders
Reacting to the killings, Bola Tinubu directed the Minister of Defence, the Chief of Defence Staff, service chiefs, the Inspector-General of Police and the Director-General of the Department of State Services to hunt down the perpetrators and ensure their swift prosecution.
“These terrorists have tested the resolve of our country and its people,” the president said, vowing that those responsible — including anyone who aided or enabled them — would be brought to justice.
Tinubu also ordered intensified security operations around forested areas believed to be serving as hideouts for criminal groups fleeing military pressure in neighbouring states.
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Governors Condemn ‘Cruel and Nefarious’ Attack
Niger State Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago described the killings as “cruel and nefarious,” calling on residents to remain resolute while assuring them of closer collaboration with federal security agencies.
The Northern States Governors’ Forum, through its chairman Muhammadu Yahaya of Gombe State, condemned the attack as a grave threat to peace and livelihoods, warning that unchecked violence continues to undermine economic and social stability across the region.
From the South, Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun labelled the killings “a crime against humanity,” urging security agencies to deploy overwhelming force to prevent a recurrence.
Atiku: ‘A Failure of the State’
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar joined the growing chorus of condemnation, describing the massacre and abductions as a fundamental failure of government.
“The primary duty of any government is the protection of lives and property,” Atiku said, urging urgent reforms to Nigeria’s security architecture and the immediate rescue of abducted schoolchildren reportedly among the victims.
A Familiar Pattern of Violence
The attacks occurred barely weeks after mass abductions were reported in the same axis of Niger State, reinforcing fears that criminal groups are exploiting porous forest borders linking Niger, Kwara, Kebbi and Zamfara states.
Security analysts note that repeated raids on markets, schools and religious missions point to both operational confidence among armed groups and persistent gaps in rural protection.
Critics View: Orders Without Outcomes?
While presidential directives and condemnations continue to follow every major attack, critics argue that Nigeria’s insecurity problem is no longer one of rhetoric but results.
They question whether renewed orders will translate into sustained presence, intelligence dominance and accountability — or merely fade into another cycle of outrage, mourning and promises.
For residents of Agwara and Borgu, the test is immediate: whether protection arrives before the next raid.
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