Three Soldiers Killed While Troops Eliminate 45 Bandits in Katsina

During a ferocious gunfight in Katsina State’s Danmusa Local Government Area, Nigerian Army troops killed at least forty-five robbers, but they also lost a captain and two other soldiers.

The incident happened on Friday after a credible intelligence-based operation.

Nasir Mua’zu, the Katsina State Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, made the announcement in a statement on Saturday.

The conflict came after Zamfara State robbers attacked Alhazawa village in Musawa Local Government Area on March 5 in an attempt to rustle cattle, according to the statement.

The conflict started on March 5 when bandits from Zamfara State assaulted Alhazawa hamlet in Musawa LGA while riding motorcycles and armed with advanced weaponry. They came to steal cattle, according to the statement.

However, the invaders were reportedly repelled by some repentant bandits and residents of the village.

Residents and local bandits who had turned their backs fought back. All of the rustled cows were found and given back to their owners after four bandits were slain, Mua’zu continued.

It was reported that a big number of the bandits returned the next day to exact revenge. They allegedly came upon soldiers from the Army’s Forward Operating Base in Dan Ali while traveling through Maidabino A ward on their way to Musawa LGA.

An furious and fierce conflict ensued. According to the statement, all 45 bandits were successfully neutralized by the Army.

Two well-known bandit figures were among those slain: Alti, the nephew and second-in-command of bandit leader Adamu Alieru, and Damale, another prominent robber.

The mission resulted in soldier casualties despite the success.

But the triumph was not without a price. The statement also stated that two other soldiers and Captain Paul Hassan were killed in the confrontation.

The Katsina State Government praised the soldiers’ valor during the operation.

“On behalf of the Katsina people, the administration, and State Governor Mallam Dikko Umaru Radda, I applaud our soldiers’ bravery and selflessness. Numerous lives have been spared by their acts, which have also interfered with these hazardous criminals’ operations,” Mua’zu stated.

Along with offering his condolences to the families of the slain troops, he reassured the locals that the state’s security forces would keep going after criminal groups.

“Our security personnel are still on guard and will keep going after these crooks wherever they may go. We won’t stop until all of Katsina State is completely at peace,” he continued.