Despite stepped-up military operations, armed gangs abducted at least 20 people across Kwara and Kano between Monday night and Tuesday morning, barely a day after 38 worshippers seized from a church in Eruku, Kwara State, were freed. Their release, secured through what officials described as a non-kinetic strategy involving the Department of State Services and the military, has brought relief — and fresh scrutiny — to the government’s approach to ransom-free negotiation.
Presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga said there was no payment to the abductors, insisting that the hostages were released through communication channels established with the kidnappers. But within hours, a new attack struck Isapa, a farming community a few kilometres from Eruku, where at least 10 people — including a pregnant woman, nursing mothers and young children — were taken. Some local leaders put the figure at 11, naming seven members of one family among the missing.
According to residents, about 30 gunmen entered the village around 6pm, firing indiscriminately and driving cattle through the settlement. Walls and window panes were reportedly perforated with bullet holes, and spent AK-47 shells were said to have littered the streets by morning.
Police confirmed the attack, saying 10 people were abducted and one woman treated for a gunshot wound before being discharged. The state commissioner of police visited the community on Tuesday and announced intensified search-and-rescue efforts involving tactical units and local vigilantes. A senior security officer, however, acknowledged that the dense forests stretching across Eruku and neighbouring towns remained difficult to secure despite federal reinforcements.
The raid marks the third major kidnapping in Ekiti LGA in less than a month. Eighteen residents were taken three weeks ago, then 38 churchgoers last week — all later freed. Local vigilantes have now increased night patrols, while churches and mosques are scaling back evening activities amid fears the gangs could be attempting to encircle the area.
In Kano, another 10 were seized late on Monday in Biresawa and Tsundu villages, Tsanyawa LGA. A relative of several victims, Kabiru Usman, said the attackers arrived on foot around 10pm, abducting five people from each community. Locals tried to resist but were outgunned. Usman told reporters they had warned police and military units hours earlier after receiving intelligence of an imminent raid. Police in Kano say they are investigating.
In Nasarawa, a church crusade in Mararaba Udege ended abruptly after reports of bandits nearby. One youth was allegedly attacked with a machete. Organisers say many in the area now live in fear, citing unreported farm and road attacks. Police say no formal complaint has been filed.
Tinubu orders forest lockdown in Kwara, Kebbi and Niger
Amid the renewed violence, President Bola Tinubu has directed the Air Force to expand round-the-clock aerial surveillance across forest belts in Kwara, with the same order extended to Kebbi and Niger. “Maintain 24-hour surveillance and link up with the boots on the ground,” presidential aide Sunday Dare wrote on X. Communities were urged to report suspicious movement immediately.
In Kebbi, 24 schoolgirls abducted last week from Government Girls’ Comprehensive Secondary School, Maga, were released on Tuesday. Governor Nasir Idris described their freedom as a “huge relief,” though authorities did not confirm whether ransom or negotiation was involved. The students are expected to receive medical and psychological support before returning to their families. Tinubu welcomed the news, calling for more deployments to vulnerable areas.
The Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, who visited Kebbi on Tuesday, labelled the attack “an act of terror designed to spread fear and deny children the right to learn”, and pledged intensified operations across the north-west.
Debate grows over negotiations with armed groups
While government officials maintain that no ransom was paid in Kwara, security analysts remain split. Retired officers praised the rescue as bloodless, but several warned that negotiation risks emboldening criminal networks unless punitive follow-up operations are guaranteed. Others argued that saving lives sometimes requires compromise in the short term.
Opposition parties were blunt. The Peoples Democratic Party said the government’s approach exposed “ineptitude and inefficiency”, demanding clarity on the terms of negotiation. The New Nigeria People’s Party echoed global norms that discourage dialogue with terrorists, arguing that concessions fuel the cycle of kidnapping. Still, both acknowledged that families of hostages often want immediate release above principle.
For residents in Kwara, Kano and Nasarawa, such debate is overshadowed by a more present anxiety: one attack follows another, and safety — even after a successful rescue — remains precarious. As one village elder in Isapa put it: “People are terrified. Eleven people disappeared into the bush. We don’t know what tomorrow holds.”
