Nigeria’s military killed 45 militants in clashes in the Danmusa area of Katsina state, in the country’s northwest, the Katsina state government said Saturday, citing a statement from the state commissioner for internal security and home affairs, Nasir Mua’zu.
Mua’zu said the fighting happened Friday and followed what he described as a failed attempt by gunmen to steal cattle on Thursday in the same area. He said the events escalated after the gunmen returned, with the commissioner adding that this return came “seeking revenge” and that it led to an “intense and fierce battle.”
In the statement, Mua’zu said, “Seeking revenge, the bandits returned in large numbers on March 6,” and described what followed in the next days of fighting between the military and the gunmen. He said the army then “successfully neutralized all 45 bandits.”
The AP report also placed the Katsina clashes within a wider picture of insecurity in Nigeria’s north, describing the country as battling a complex security crisis involving multiple armed groups. It noted that the United States has sent troops to Nigeria to help advise its military on the fight against insecurity.
The report said prominent Islamic militant groups in Nigeria include Boko Haram and a breakaway faction affiliated with the Islamic State group known as Islamic State West Africa Province. It also said there is the IS-linked Lakurawa, along with other “bandit” groups that focus on kidnapping for ransom and illegal mining.
The AP report further said the broader crisis has worsened recently to include militants from the neighboring Sahel region, including the Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, which it said claimed its first attack on Nigerian soil last year. The report added that several thousand people in Nigeria have been killed, citing data from the United Nations, and said analysts argue the government has not been doing enough to protect its citizens.