Civilians bear the burden as terrorist gangs gang up on security forces in Sokoto

Bello Turji, leader of a Nigerian terrorist gang, is building an army of criminals to suppress security force operations in Sokoto State in northwestern Nigeria.

On Tuesday, August 6, Turji and Halilu Sububu, another criminal leader in the state, joined forces to attack security operatives in a gun battle that lasted for hours. Locals who witnessed the confrontation in Gidan Dikko and Dustin Gwabro villages in Isa told HumAngle that the terrorist alliance has taken a toll on many civilians.

Hundreds of motorcycles had brought various terrorist groups to Turba, a nearby village, where they took up positions to attack the security forces. Residents told HumAngle that for the first time they saw terrorists carrying and deploying various types of ammunition, including the rocket-propelled grenade (RPG).

“They also mounted firearms to fight soldiers and local vigilantes who came to protect us in Sabon-Birni,” Garba Makeri, a local blacksmith in the area, told HumAngle. The armed groups tried to attack members of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) in the village but failed.

The terrorists, who are based in about 17 terrorist camps in the eastern parts of Sokoto in Isa, Sabon-Birni and Raba local government areas, are furious over the recent military offensives against them. They accuse local vigilantes of supporting surveillance operations that have brought death and destruction to them. Other terrorist groups involved in the violent coalition include the Dan-Dari Buyar-led gang and the Ali Dan-Oga terror syndicate.

“We want to use this medium to inform the Nigerian security agencies present in Isa and Sabon-Birni LGAs that Ruggar Maiyara, a forest community connecting the two areas, is now a place where the armed terrorists spend their nights. They always leave their camps after 8pm and return to their dens at 5am the next morning. They do this as a tactic to evade military operations and attacks by Community Protection Guards (CPG),” Basharu Guyawa, a social activist and resident of Isa, told HumAngle. Basharu works with the Movement for Social Justice, a civil society organisation based in Sokoto State, which gathers local intelligence on terrorist operations in the North-West region.

The Ruggar Maiyara Forest is an ungoverned space in the Republic of Niger, bordering the Nigerian towns of Isa and Sabon-Birnin, according to local sources contacted by HumAngle, including local security guards, residents and a social activist. The sources added that although the forest is difficult to reach, the terrorists find solace in the place “as there is limited civilian presence in the nearby villages”.

Now, over 31 villages have been abandoned for safety, with villagers seeking refuge in Isa town, after which the terrorists turned their homes into hideouts. Several sources told HumAngle that Turji, Halilu and others often return to the forest after a show of force against security agents guarding the restive communities in Isa.

However, despite their ruses, scores of terrorists were killed in the eastern parts of Sokoto, including terror groups from Niger Republic, according to residents. Many others were displaced from their camps in the Sabon-Birni area of ​​the state. A local security guard who participated in a clash between the coalition of terror groups and the CJTF told HumAngle that over 50 terrorists were killed in Turba forest area, noting that he had taken inventory of the criminal casualties during the encounter. A combination of Halilu and Turji fighters were seen fleeing and heading to the forest for cover after receiving a heavy blow from the military.

The fighting lasted more than three days, with soldiers running out of bullets and sustaining minor injuries from the attacks. But the alliance took a toll on civilians, according to interviews with residents and people with knowledge of the armed groups’ inner workings.

“Almost all the remote villages in the eastern parts of Sokoto have been displaced; a significant number of others are ungoverned areas under the merciless rule of armed terrorists,” said Rabiu Bala, a resident who was abducted three times. “We have told both the Sokoto and Federal Governments of the humiliation and inhuman treatment we are being meted out by the terrorists.”

Isa residents told HumAngle that they had suffered too long without help, adding that authorities had failed to “stop these criminal gangs from invading our homes to rape, kill aimlessly, steal our livestock and kidnap our innocent people for ransom.”

“We do not have military barracks in all local government areas in Eastern Sokoto. But there are more than 16 terrorist groups and more are popping up in Sububu forest,” said Basharu Isa, a resident of the town.

Recently, Basharu’s mother became seriously ill and when they finally raised money to take her to the hospital, they were attacked by terrorists operating in the area.

“The armed terrorists intercepted our vehicle and abducted my mother and three of our siblings,” he said. “I could only escape when two trucks arrived and the gang came to attack them.”

Residents said several humanitarian agencies and development partners had left their communities because of the attacks. “They labeled our eastern region as a red zone,” Basharu complained.

Turji is known to commit violent crimes in the region. He has organised some of the most feared massacres in the state and kidnapped hundreds of people for ransom. Turji, who roamed with his gang members, started his terrorist activities in Shinkafi area of ​​Zamfara but later moved to Sabon Birni in 2021.

After acquiring heavy ammunition from his ransom proceeds, he took over the governance and economy of Sabon-Birni. He dismissed the town’s village chiefs and appointed his men as replacements. He imposed illegal taxes and collected hundreds of millions to buy more weapons. He rose to prominence after he wrote an open letter to former President Muhammadu Buhari in January 2022, calling for a peace deal.

Halilu is another leader with strong ties to French-speaking jihadists from the Republic of Niger (where he grew up) and Burkina Faso. He also fuels his activities with large-scale illegal mining and kidnappings for ransom.

A few years ago, he took over most of the mining sites in the Sumke forest in the Anka area of ​​Zamfara unchallenged, demonstrating his influence among other criminal groups in the state, according to a Premium Times report. Now, Halilu and Turji are conspiring with smaller terrorist groups to fight the military in the region, causing fear and unrest among residents.

Muhammad Danjuma, a security expert, says that while the coalition is scary, it should motivate Nigerian security agencies to also work together to flush out non-state actors. “If the terrorists can come together, why can’t the security agents work together to fight back?”

Many communities have recently been hit by severe terrorist attacks in Sokoto, with hundreds of villagers leaving the troubled areas to settle in safer parts of the state, mainly because state forces are struggling to contain these attacks.

HumAngle recently reported how terrorists from Niger Republic and other neighbouring countries found their way into Nigeria to terrorise townspeople in the eastern region of Sokoto. In Tureta area, the Nigerian army withdrew its soldiers, endangering the volatile axis and angering villagers who were worried about their safety.

“Halilu Sububu trained Bello Turji and other terrorists in northern Zamfara and eastern Sokoto; they only split for reasons known to them,” revealed an investigator familiar with terrorist operations in the region.

The researcher, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not allowed to speak to journalists, added that Halilu has more weapons than any terrorist in the northwestern region and is known as one of the richest violent criminals in the region.

“The cooperation of these terrorists will be truly dangerous for the people.”