Troops Intensify Operations In Kebbi As Lakurawa Members Flee

Members of the Lakurawa armed group have been retreating as the military ramps up coordinated ground and air attacks on the group’s camps across Kebbi and Sokoto states.

Following an attack by the Lakurawa group on the Mera community in Augie Local Government Area of Kebbi State, which claimed 17 lives, the army headquarters deployed a contingent of soldiers to the area.

Upon arrival in Birnin Kebbi, the troops, according to Abdullahi Idris Zuru, media aide to the Kebbi governor, met with deputy governor Abubakar Umar Tafida at the Cabinet Office before proceeding to Mera.

Zuru said the troops succeeded in dislodging the bandits and recovering several rustled cattle left behind as the attackers fled.

This deployment came after an urgent appeal from Kebbi State governor, Dr Nasir Idris, for federal support to address the escalating violence by armed groups disrupting life in rural communities.

“The governor has pledged to safeguard the lives and property of all Kebbi State citizens, leading him to seek federal intervention to counter-terrorism across the state,” Zuru said.

Meanwhile, the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, has assured that the Lakurawa armed group terrorising Northwestern states would be flushed out of Nigeria.

Ribadu gave the assurance on Wednesday in Abuja at the opening ceremony of the 2024 Comptroller-General of Customs Conference, where he represented President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

“We will chase the so-called Lukarawa out of our country. We will put critics to shame and shut their mouths in no time.

“Boko Haram, which has been ravaging our country, is now on the run. Its members are now moving to other neighbouring countries because Nigeria is no longer conducive for their operations,” he said.

He also said signs that things are getting better with the economy are there for all to see, citing increased crude oil production in the Niger Delta and the fiscal reforms by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as part of such efforts.

“Crude oil production has hit 1.8 million bpd and the Central Bank has been sanitised; no one is taking a dime from the CBN. When we promised that we would fix this country, we will do so because President Tinubu has never been a failure,” he added.