President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has ordered continuous aerial surveillance over forests in Kwara, Kebbi and parts of Niger State as security forces intensify operations against insurgents and bandits across the Northcentral and Northwest.
The directive, disclosed yesterday by the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Public Communication, Sunday Dare, via his verified X handle, mandates the Nigerian Air Force to provide round-the-clock monitoring of hard-to-reach forest zones believed to be hideouts of criminal groups.
According to Dare, the President instructed the Air Force to expand reconnaissance “across the innermost parts of the forests,” synchronising operations with ground troops already deployed for rescue missions and counter-terrorism duties. The same level of operational pressure is to be replicated along the Kebbi–Niger axis, where multiple rescue efforts are currently underway.
The President’s order comes amid a troubling escalation of insecurity in the region, including last week’s mass abduction of worshippers in Eruku, Kwara State, and attacks in parts of Niger and Kebbi. On Sunday, 38 abductees from Eruku were rescued, while 51 Niger pupils were reunited with their families. Kidnapped Kebbi students have also regained freedom.
However, the crisis has persisted with bandits attacking Isapa in Kwara State, abducting 11 people, including a pregnant woman and children.
A community elder said the attackers moved through parts of the town firing sporadically, leaving bullet holes in walls and doors. Expended AK-47 shells were later recovered after the gunmen retreated with their captives.
Kwara State Commissioner of Police, Adekimi Ojo, who visited the community for an on-the-spot assessment, confirmed the attack.
https://x.com/SundayDareSD/status/1993332251161952447
Police spokesperson Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi said preliminary findings showed that armed men, suspected to be herders, invaded the village around 6:30pm on Monday. One woman sustained a gunshot wound but has since been treated and discharged.
“A search-and-rescue operation is currently underway, involving police tactical teams and local vigilante groups, who are combing the surrounding bushes with the objective of rescuing the victims and apprehending the culprits,” the police statement said, adding that normalcy has been restored and the situation remains under close monitoring.
President Tinubu, who has been receiving regular updates from frontline commanders, also directed all security formations to adopt an “all-out, no-retreat posture” until the perpetrators are neutralised and all abducted citizens are safely returned. Communities in the affected areas have been urged to provide timely intelligence to support the intensified military operations.
Last week, the President ordered the withdrawal of police escorts from Very Important Personalities (VIPs) to strengthen community policing and reinforce joint security operations across the North.
Security analysts say the new full-spectrum cordon marks one of the administration’s most assertive responses yet to the rising tide of rural and peri-urban insecurity.
