One week, many casualties: Army general killed, pupils abducted as Nigeria’s insecurity escalates

Tinubu

In a single harrowing week, Nigeria’s heartland was plunged into sorrow and fear as violence struck with brutal force from all possible angles – ambush, abduction, and attack.

From the serene evening worship disrupted by gunfire in Kwara to the brutal execution of a frontline commander in Borno and the chilling abductions of schoolchildren and civilians across the north-west, these events weave a grim tapestry of insecurity and loss that continues to deepen.

FRONTLINE COMMANDER KILLED BY ISWAP

UBA WAS KILLED AFTER HIS CAPTURE BY ISWAP FIGHTERS

Last week Friday, in the volatile fringes of Damboa Road along Wajiroko in Borno, the fighters of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) ambushed a convoy of soldiers and operatives of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) led by M. Uba, a brigadier general.

Some soldiers and CJTF members were said to have lost their lives in that encounter, including some of the insurgents. Uba, the commander of the 25 task force brigade, was captured alive and executed chillingly.

President Bola Tinubu mourned the brigadier general and other soldiers who died in the attack.

“As the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, I am depressed with the tragic death of our soldiers and officers on active duty. May God comfort the families of Brigadier General Musa Uba and other fallen heroes,” the president said.

WOMEN, CHILDREN ABDUCTED IN ZAMFARA

On Saturday, terrorists struck Fegin Baza village in Tsafe LGA of Zamfara state, killing three, including Umaru Moriki, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Sarkin Fadan Moriki, and abducting at least 64 civilians, among them women and children.