Terrorists kill one, kidnap 9 in Niger village attack

Suspected local bandits have killed one person and kidnapped nine others in an attack on Palaita, a village near a military base in Erena, a garrison town hosting hundreds of displaced persons in Shiroro LGA, Niger State.

The terrorists rode on motorcycles into the village Sunday evening after attacking villages along the road to Palaita, multiple sources said, adding that villagers fled their homes to Erena as soldiers confronted the attackers in Palaita.

The terrorists kidnapped five men and four women, PREMIUM TIMES gathered.

A resident of Erena, Hannatu Kabiru, who provided shelter for some displaced persons from Palaita, said the terrorists raided Kutako, Dnakpala and Gogala villages before moving to Palaita.

“They gathered people from those villages and beat them mercilessly,” she said. “They only started firing shots when they got to Palaita, where they killed one person and kidnapped other people.”

Ms Hannatu said the terrorists also stole livestock like cattle, sheep and goats. Other residents and displaced persons this reporter spoke with on Monday corroborated her account.

The attack came five days after terrorists kidnapped six girls between the ages of 15 and 17 in the Pandogari in Rafi LGA of Niger State.

Residents said their communities have been under attack since the Kaduna State Government struck a peace deal with terrorists.

Tension in Erena

Terrorists had chased residents from Erena in 2020. However, the town is now protected by a joint team of the military and local vigilantes, making it a sanctuary for people fleeing from the terror of Boko Haram fighters and other groups in places like Allawa, Basa, Kurebe and other villages in the axis.

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Sunday’s incident sent shock waves across the town as residents and displaced persons packed their belongings, ready to cross the river to other communities.

“We thought the military base was under attack,” Yahuza Agumi, a displaced person from Allawa, said.

Mr Agumi’s town, also protected by the military, fell under the grips of terrorists taking cover in the Allawa forest reserve last February.

Landmines planted by the terrorists on roads leading to Allawa killed many locals and soldiers, forcing the military to withdraw from the town. The civilian population also fled and have since lived as displaced persons in Erena, Kuta and other parts of the state.

Mr Agumi and other displaced persons remembered the Allawa episode and feared they would be displaced again until they saw soldiers responding to the terror on Sunday.

“We heard the gunshot, and it looked as if they had arrived in the town,” Mr Agumi said. “But the soldiers told us not to panic.”

Ibrahim Muhammed in Erena said he saw people jumping into a pick-up truck, “ready to leave Erena.”

“But everything was brought under control,” he said.

Sources said the terrorists fled under fire from the soldiers, but none of them was killed or arrested.