Jan. 5 (UPI) — President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of Nigeria has ordered police and military to hunt down the armed assailants who killed and abducted dozens of people in Niger State over the weekend.
“These terrorists have tested the resolve of our country and its people. They must face the full consequences of their criminal actions. No matter who they are or what their intent is, they must be hunted down,” Tinubu said in a statement.
The defense minister, chief of defense staff, the services chiefs, the inspector-general of police and others have been directed by the president to bring those responsible for the Kasuwan Daji attack to justice.
“I have also directed that all abducted victims be urgently rescued and that security operations around vulnerable communities, especially near forests, be intensified,” Tinubu said.
Armed assailants attacked Kasuwan Daji, a village in northern Nigeria’s Niger State, on Saturday afternoon, killing more than 40 people and abducting many others, national newspaper Punch reported.
Authorities believe that the assailants who attacked the village were fleeing Sokoto and Zamfara following the U.S. attack targeting Islamic State militants in Sokoto State on Dec. 25.
Police spokesperson Wasiu Abiodun said that attackers also destroyed the local market, looted shops and stole food.
Amnesty International on Sunday condemned the attack while criticizing the government for not doing more to protect its citizens.
“The attack on Saturday 3 January 2026 is yet another indication of the utter failure of the Nigerian authorities to protect lives,” the international rights organization said in a statement.
It said authorities have left rural communities to the “mercy of rampaging gunmen” who have killed thousands in northern Nigeria since 2020.
“President Bola Tinubu claims that he has repeatedly tasked security agencies to end the killing so that people can go to bed with their eyes closed, but clearly nothing has changed,” it said.
“The consistent failure to bring the suspected perpetrators to justice is unacceptable.”
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