Jihadist group Lakurawa torches 7 villages in Northwest Nigeria! A newly emerged jihadist group, Lakurawa, has escalated violence in northwest Nigeria, launching a revenge attack over the weekend that left 11 people dead and seven villages burned. The militants targeted Birnin Dede and six other villages near the Nigerian-Niger border, following the killing of their commander by security forces, according to a police spokesperson.
Retaliation for Commander’s Death
Kebbi state police spokesperson Nafiu Abubakar confirmed the attack, stating:
“The Lakurawa terrorists shot dead 11 people and injured two others… (and) set fire to the seven villages.”
The attack is believed to be in retaliation for the death of their senior commander, Maigemu, who was killed by security personnel on Thursday. His killing came just days after Lakurawa fighters murdered six civilians in separate attacks on two nearby communities.
“The attack was apparently a reprisal for the killing of their commander, who was notorious for attacks on communities in the area,” Abubakar added.
Jihadist group Lakurawa
Rising Jihadist Influence in Northwest Nigeria
For years, northwest and central Nigeria have suffered from violent “banditry”, where criminal gangs raid villages, loot homes, kidnap residents for ransom, and rustle livestock. Unlike Boko Haram and ISWAP (Islamic State West Africa Province)—jihadist groups that operate in northeastern Nigeria—these bandits have historically been motivated by economic gains rather than religious ideology.
However, the emergence of Lakurawa jihadists in the northwest is shifting the region’s security crisis.
“The recent appearance of Lakurawa jihadists in the northwest has worsened the violence in the region,” security analysts warn.
Who Are the Lakurawa Jihadists?
The Lakurawa group is a newly identified faction with foreign fighters from Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso—three countries that have been hotbeds for Islamist insurgencies. These militants have crossed into Nigeria and established bases in Kebbi’s Tsauni forest, which extends into neighboring Niger Republic.
From these remote camps, Lakurawa militants:
✅ Launch deadly attacks on villages
✅ Enforce strict sharia law
✅ Impose “taxation” on local communities
✅ Recruit young men by offering them financial support
“The group urges communities where it operates to rebel against secular authorities, while imposing its own strict interpretation of sharia law,” said an intelligence source.
This strategy mirrors the tactics used by Boko Haram and ISWAP in northeastern Nigeria, where jihadists exploit economic hardship to win local support.
Foreign Fighters and Cross-Border Threats
The presence of foreign jihadists in northwest Nigeria raises new security concerns, as it suggests growing regional coordination between extremist groups across West Africa.
The Lakurawa group’s ability to:
🔴 Move freely across Nigeria-Niger borders
🔴 Establish safe havens in remote forests
🔴 Sustain long-term insurgency campaigns
…makes it a significant new threat to Nigeria’s fragile security landscape.
What’s Next?
As Lakurawa militants expand their operations, experts warn that the group could transform into a major insurgent force, complicating counterterrorism efforts in Nigeria.
Authorities have yet to fully assess the scale of the group’s operations, but with its growing local recruitment efforts and links to jihadist movements in the Sahel, urgent action is needed to prevent further escalation.
With the recent killings and destruction, the question remains: Can Nigeria’s security forces contain this rising jihadist threat before it spirals out of control?
