A Nigerian Army lieutenant and several soldiers have reportedly been killed in a bandit ambush along a highway in Zamfara State, with at least 15 civilians also feared dead in a separate but related attack on a nearby village.
Sources confirmed that among the slain soldiers was Lieutenant Isma’il Yahya, who died alongside other military personnel while attempting to repel a bandit assault. The army has yet to issue an official statement, but families of the fallen soldiers have reportedly been informed.
In a related incident, heavily armed terrorists attacked Tofa village in the Magami district of Gusau Local Government Area, killing over 15 residents. Eyewitnesses said many others were injured or are currently missing following the assault.
“Tofa has been under constant attacks,” a local source revealed. “On Sunday, bandits struck again, ambushing soldiers and slaughtering villagers. Most residents have since fled the area due to repeated violence and heavy levies imposed by the bandits.”
The village, located close to Gusau, the state capital, is now largely deserted as fear grips the community amid a lack of adequate security presence.
Efforts to reach the Nigerian Army’s spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Onyinyechi Anele, for comment were unsuccessful, as her phone remained switched off.
Zamfara continues to be one of the hardest-hit states in northern Nigeria, plagued by violent banditry. These armed groups, operating from dense forests spanning Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna, and Niger states, have been responsible for widespread killings, abductions, and the destruction of rural communities.
In 2019, former Governor and current Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, signed a controversial peace deal with the bandits. Despite the agreement, the violence has persisted, with communities still under siege and lives lost on a near-daily basis.
