2021: Bandits kill ‘1,192, kidnap 3,348’ in Kaduna

Bandits killed no fewer than 1,192 people and abducted 3,348 others across Kaduna State between January and December 2021.

Those killed are 1,038 men, 104 women and 50 minors.

• NIGERIA DAILY: How long can people go without their phones
• Kano APC crisis: Again, Buni meets Shekarau, Barau, Gaya, others

This was contained in a security situation report presented by the Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, to Governor Nasir El-Rufai on Tuesday.

Aruwan said Kaduna Central Senatorial District recorded 720 deaths from banditry, communal clashes, violence, and reprisal while Southern Kaduna Senatorial District accounted for 406 deaths from communal clashes and banditry.

Analyzing the report, the governor lamented that the number was 255 more than those killed in 2020 despite efforts to fight crimes in the state.

He noted that at least nine persons were kidnapped daily by bandits across the state in 2021.

El-Rufai, therefore, called on the federal government to create a theatre command to confront the insurgency in affected five states in North West and Niger State as done in the North East.

“The creation of such a theatre command will enable a holistic approach to counter-insurgent operations across the six affected states and the enhanced coordination of the resources of the armed forces, the police, the SSS, our respective state vigilance services, hunters, and other local volunteers to fight the insurgents,” he said.