Communities flee, Village Head in exile as Lakurawa, bandits, kidnappers sack villages in Sokoto

By Musa Ubandawaki, Sokoto

SOKOTO: Waves of terror swept through Kebbe and Tambuwal local government areas of Sokoto State as heavily armed Lakurawa bandits and kidnappers unleashed coordinated attacks that left entire communities deserted, families displaced, and lives shattered.

In a trail of destruction that spanned villages across two districts, the marauders stormed settlements with reckless abandon, sacking homes, looting food stores, and leaving blood stained footprints of grief in their wake.

Among the hardest-hit areas were Fakku, Sha’alwashi, Tulluwa, Bashi Bakin Dutse, and Rafin-Gora in Kuchi District of Kebbe LGA, where residents fled in panic as the attackers unleashed gunfire and set homes ablaze. The once-thriving agrarian communities now stand in ruins, their people scattered in search of safety.

The situation grew so dire that the village head of Fakku and his family were forced into exile, abandoning their ancestral home to seek refuge in Koko, Kebbi State, joining hundreds of displaced persons who have fled across state boundaries to escape the escalating violence.

In Jabo District of Tambuwal LGA, the horror was no less devastating. Villages including Gesolodi, Hilya, Guraye, Guma, Chakai, Modo, Badariya, Tafki, Balera, Gudumawa, and Rafin Shinkafa were overrun in coordinated raids that left survivors recounting tales of anguish and despair.

Residents say the attacks followed the now-notorious Lakurawa style of banditry a merciless strategy of killing, looting, kidnapping, and burning designed to instill fear and force communities into submission or abandonment.

Hundreds of families have since fled their homes, trekking long distances in search of refuge, some carrying only the clothes on their backs, while others arrived at makeshift camps in neighboring Kebbi State, broken and traumatized.

The humanitarian toll has been immense. Croplands have been abandoned, livestock rustled, and food supplies depleted, leaving the displaced in dire need of basic necessities. Fear of further attacks has paralyzed farming activities, threatening food security in the region.

Hon.Abdussamad Dasuki member representing Tambuwal/Kebbe federal Constituency recently presented relief materials including bags of maize, millet, Gari, and kukuli with other items to affected families and also condoled with bereaved households who lost loved ones to the onslaught.

Hon. Dasuki while presenting the relief materials expressed deep concern over the unchecked violence, lamenting that, the displacement of entire communities, including traditional leaders, reflects the gravity of insecurity gripping Sokoto State.

He urged authorities to intensify security operations to reclaim affected villages and restore dignity to the displaced commities.

The affected villages are Fakku, Sha’alwashi, Tulluwa, Bashi Bakin Dutse and Rafin-Gora in Kuchi district in Kebbe local government area

Others are Gesolodi, Hilya, Guraye, Guma, Chakai, Modo, Badariya, Tafki, Balera, Gudumawa and Rafin Shinkafa in Jabo district in Tambuwal local government area.

Community members who managed to escape narrated heartbreaking ordeals from watching relatives gunned down to helplessly fleeing as homes and granaries were engulfed in flames. Many now live with uncertainty, unsure if they will ever return to their villages.

The attacks on Kebbe and Tambuwal have amplified fears that rural Sokoto is gradually being hollowed out by marauding bandits whose reign of terror leaves behind nothing but ruins and mass graves. Unless decisive action is taken, the state risks a humanitarian catastrophe of alarming proportions.

The plight of Fakku’s displaced village head and his people now stands as a stark reminder of the creeping erosion of safety, heritage, and authority in Sokoto’s rural heartlands. For the survivors, the cries of the sacked villages echo louder than ever: they need help, they need protection, and they need it now.

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