Nigerian military warns of new militia threat from Niger and Mali

8/11/2024 6:18

        Nigeria's military has warned
        of a new insurgent group, Lakurawas, infiltrating the country's
        northwest region from neighbouring Niger and Mali, its
        spokesperson said on Thursday.
        
        Defense spokesperson Major-General Edward Buba said the
        group, an affiliate of militias operating in the Sahel region,
        has been active in northwest Sokoto and Kebbi states. The
        ideology of the group is not known.
        
        "They began an incursion into northern parts of Sokoto and
        Kebbi states from the Niger and Mali axis, particularly after
        the coup in Niger Republic," Buba said in statement.
        The influx of Lakurawas is linked to the July 2023 coup in
        Niger, which disrupted joint military patrols along the border
        between Nigeria and Niger.
        
        While patrols have since resumed, the military remains
        vigilant against further infiltration, Buba said.
        
        Nigeria has been grappling with a long-running insurgency in
        its northeast, primarily driven by the Islamist armed group Boko
        Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State West Africa Province
        (ISWAP).
        
        But the emergence of Lakurawas highlights a growing security
        threat in the country's northwest, a region already prone to
        attacks by armed gangs and kidnappings for ransom.
        
        Buba reported that the military had killed 163 insurgents,
        arrested 82, and rescued at least 80 kidnapped individuals in
        the northwest region last month.