Air Force abandons Zamfara community as terrorists kill 15 in broad daylight

Another shocking reason why terrorists are killing so many people in Zamfara State without the Nigerian military being able to stop them was exposed yesterday.

The Emir of Bungudu, Alhaji Hassan Attahiru, said the bandits recently stormed his domain in broad daylight and killed 15 people.

The emir said the Nigerian Air Force deliberately ignored a distress call when the bandits were attacking his domain.

He suggested that the Air Force was angry because of how, last week, the community exposed what the Nigerian Military was really doing in Zamfara.

Last week, an Emir in the area revealed that the Nigerian military only bombs trees, birds and other animals; not the attackers.

This is why the terrorists always continue their attacks as soon as the military finishes its bombing.

A suspected leader of the bandits responsible for the killings in Zamfara made the claim.

He stated this during a secret conversation with the emir in Zamfara State.
The Emir of Bungudu, Alhaji Hassan Attahiru, told The Punch yesterday that the killings by bandits were still very serious.

Attahiru stated, “Just on Saturday, in my domain, the bandits struck in broad daylight and killed 15 people. Thirteen people died instantly, while two others gave up the ghost later.

“The worst of all was that when the local government chairman alerted the head of the air force to the attack, the response he got from the other end was that he was not supposed to have picked his (of the LG chairman) call, ‘since you people have decided to disgrace us.’

“When the council chairman informed me of what transpired, I picked my phone and called the air force commander. Three times I did, but he never picked my calls and since Saturday, he has yet to return my calls.”

Attahiru also emphasised that the places where the bandits kept their kidnapped victims had not been reached by the security agencies.

He said, “Nobody is saying they are not doing anything. They need to do more by taking the battle to the bandits’ enclaves, instead of fighting them at the periphery.

“Most times when they strike and retreat, these bandits regroup and launch more ferocious attacks on innocent villagers, accusing them of inviting the security agencies.

“These bandits were still around and wreaking havoc. The security forces should take the war to them.”

The Emir of Bungudu also pointed out that kidnapped victims were kept in several places where the bandits had camped, scattered around and not at Dumburum alone.

The traditional ruler said, “We have notified the security agencies about their camps. Some are kept in southern Maru, Bunuwe, in Birnin area, and Dandili. The victims are not actually kept in those villages but in forests and rocky terrains.”

The Nigerian Military is yet to respond to the claim.