By Mike Odeh James
Radicalized Fulani terrorists on Sunday night struck Kachia County, Southern Kaduna, abducting more than 35 people and burning villages.
The attacking men were identified as speakers of Fulfulde, the language of the tribe of Fulani people, who claim as many as 10 million members in Nigeria.
Kachia County, 52 miles South of Kaduna, the State capital, hosts several military installations; yet Nigerian military did not respond to distress calls during attacks, residents said to TruthNigeria.
Attacking terrorists numbering between 40–50, were heavily armed and riding on motorcycle, according to local witnesses.
They attacked settlements in the precinct (ward) of Ankua on March 31, 2023, for close to 8 hours without any form of military intervention.
Multiple towns attacked
“The Fulani terrorist attack started at about 6:30 p.m. on March 31, which was on Sunday evening,” said Luka Ibrahim, 22, a farmer and a resident of the Ankua community, to TruthNigeria.
“We were sitting outside our houses when we heard gunshots coming from the direction of the village of Rugan Fulani, which is between Kaleka and Layi communities in Ankua ward, Kachia County” Ibrahim said.
“We tried calling people from Rugan Fulani to ascertain what was happening; we were told that Fulani terrorists were trying to steal cattle belonging to the locals.
“After a brief resistance from the villagers, the terrorists left the village, but not after burning down the settlement,
Ibrahim added.
Not done with burning down the settlement of Rugan Fulani, the terrorists headed straight to the next settlement, called Angwan Atiku.
“The attackers came in about 8 p.m. in the night; they were heavily armed with AKA 47; some of them came on motorcycles; and they could be up to 40 or 50,” said Samuel Mashek, 45, a taxi driver and resident of Angwan Atiku, to Truth Nigeria.
“They shot into the air as they approached; they were also careful not to kill people, but they were eager to surround the settlement and maybe capture as many of us as possible,” Mashek added.
“We noticed that they blocked all the exits of our settlement, and they started rounding up the women. Many of the women were also resisting them, and that gave us the opportunity. Many of us dashed into the bush.
“However, youths from a neighboring village came to our assistance. We went back to the village, and we discovered that eight people, mainly women, had been abducted by the terrorists, and they have left Atiku settlement.
“Similarly, the same marauders went north-west of Kachia to a settlement called Ungwan Pah Hanya and secretly abducted one person called David Musa,” Mashek said.
“15 people were kidnapped by the same group in the settlement of Angwan Pah Ciki after they had subdued the local guards, who were only armed with cutlasses,” Mashek told TruthNigeria.
According to another eyewitness, Manasseh Ishaku, the Fulani terrorists on the same night attacked the Pachi community and seized eight women, forcing them to sit on the motorcycles they came with.
“At around 10 p.m. on Sunday night, I heard the sound of motorcycles in our community, and sensing danger, I dashed to my house and hid my kids in a barn,” Ishaku said.
“As we watched, more than 30 men with Ak47s walked around the village, bringing out women from their houses and lining up behind one big man.
The big man, who was also giving orders in Fulfulde, was pointing a flashlight at the women and selecting which of the women his men were to go with,” Ishaku added.
“After like 30 minutes, they left. When we counted, we discovered that eight women in Pachi are missing,” Ishaku said.
The tribal chief of the community, Mr. Samaila Yusuf, whose villages were attacked, expressed concern that despite the huge military presence in Kachia, terrorists are roaming free in the area unchecked.
“During the attack that lasted over 7 hours, no security operatives responded despite the fact that Unguwan Pah Hanya and Pachi are just kilometers from Kachia City, which is the headquarters of different kinds of military formations,” Yusuf said.
Attacks on the Ankua Precinct becoming more frequent.
The tribal chief also expressed concern that the Sunday attack was not the first that his precinct has suffered.
“Terrorists attacked Unguwan Maigari on Saturday, March 30, 2024, and five people were kidnapped. This community too is in Ankua Ward,” Yusuf said.
TruthNigeria learned that over 35 people have so far been abducted by terrorists in Ankua Precinct of Kachia County in Southern Kaduna, with residents fleeing their villages fearing that terrorists may launch more attacks.
Attempts to contact the police public relations officer and the county boss of Kachia by TruthNigeria proved abortive as their phones were switched off.
Security Expert Speaks
In order to ascertain the motive behind the mass kidnappings and burning of houses in Ankua Precinct by terrorists, TruthNigeria spoke to security Expert and an indigene of Southern Kaduna, Mordecai Funom
“I don’t think what is happening in Southern Kaduna is different from what is happening with the rest of the country,” Funom said.
” The aims of the kidnappers are to instill fear into the indigenes (native residents) and to make sure that they do not retaliate or resist the terrorists when they attack. The women would be used as sex slaves and helpers at some point,” Funom added.
“I don’t have much of the details now, but it is obvious that they ( terrorists ) choose to concentrate on Kaduna because the state has one of the highest number of military installations in the country and it is home to the current Chief of Defense Staff,” Funom said.
“By attacking Southern Kaduna, the hope to discredit Christopher Musa who is the chief of Defense Staff,” he added.
President and Defence Minister Share Blame
Funom, who has seen action in Liberia, Somalia, Sudan and Sierra Leone, insisted that the military could stop the attacks by terrorists in Southern Kaduna and Nigeria as a whole if it decided to do it.
“The military have the ability and the wherewithal to end the waves of attacks by terrorists but for political constraints, they have not been able to do so,” according to Funom.
“I believe that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who does not understand the situation on the ground, hasn’t given the Chief of Defense Staff and the Army boss the full authority to go after the terrorists, especially in the Middle Belt,” Funom added.
” I believe that the Minister of Defense, Bello Mutawalle, has not advised the President fully on what to do. My take is that the President is being misled not to take real action against the terrorists.”
—Mike Odeh James is a Veteran Conflict Reporter covering North Central, Northwest, and Northeast Nigeria for TruthNigeria.com