Bloody week in Zamfara, as gunmen wreak havoc in two communities

“At a spot called MashayarZaki along Gusau-DansadauRoad, ourvehicle was intercepted by armed men. They began to fire shots at thevehicle. The driver was killed and a 15-year-old girl was also shot dead. “However, a three-year-old girl survived the horrible attack even after a bullet fired by the armed men hit her head. She is currently […]

“At a spot called MashayarZaki along Gusau-DansadauRoad, ourvehicle was intercepted by armed men. They began to fire shots at thevehicle. The driver was killed and a 15-year-old girl was also shot dead.

“However, a three-year-old girl survived the horrible attack even after a bullet fired by the armed men hit her head. She is currently receiving treatment at a medical facility,” a survivor of the attack identified as Ibrahim Hamisu said.

The dreaded spot along Gusau-Dansadau known as Mashayar Zaki is 20km north of Dansadau town or 80km south of Gusau, the state capital.

The heavily forested spot has been a safe haven for armed bandits.The area is feared by travellers plying the road as most of the attacks carried out by gunmen are within the spot, residents told Daily Trust on Sunday.

“We suddenly came under fire by the armed bandits. The vehicle kept swerving until it lost control after the driver was shot. Within some minutes, three co-passengers were killed. The attackers ransacked the vehicle and made away with some valuables,” he added.

However, in Malele community where at least eight people were killed, residents swiftly responded to the attacks by firing back at the assailants.

“We got wind of the attacks few hours before and we prepared for them. The assailants arrived in large number and were firing at the people. They were trying hard to gain access to the community to wreak havoc.

“A heavy fighting ensued despite the fact that we had lighter weapons compared to their own. Even those killed were gunned down when they were trying to escape the carnage because they weren’t courageous enough to confront the assailants.

“We fought for several hours, thinking that we would get intervention from security operatives. The armed men withdrew around 4pm that day but they were able to make away with herds of cattle and other domestic animals,” a resident Ali Tukur said.

The armed men also attacked Babban Kwari, another community in Dansadau district. They killed about five people there. They also torched residential houses, motor bikes and a number of shops.

These days, the armed men target local markets for attacks. Markets such as Mutunji in Dansadau district and Birnin Tsaba in Birnin Magaji Local Government Area have at one time or the other been attacked, Daily Trust on Sunday learnt.

Even though authorities are blaming the local vigilantes, otherwise known as Yan Sakai for the renewed attacks, the Yan Sakai are blamingthe resurgence of the attacks on unrepentant bandits.

“I have never dreamt of a time when I would be moving around without even holding a knife. We were summoned by authorities and asked to surrender our arms to pave way for peace to reign and we all obliged to the instructions by the government.

“However, some of the armed men refused to submit their weapons. They saw this as an opportunity to start attacking our communities once again. They have broken their covenant with government and we the Yan Sakai. They refused to keep to their own part of the agreement because they are bloodthirsty.

“We have no option than to retake arms and defend ourselves. What we want the authorities to understand is that these people would never keep to their promise because they are used to bloodletting and all other forms of heinous crimes,” a vigilante leader Hamisu Aminu said.

In June last year, authorities had engaged the armed men and the local vigilante groups known as Yan Sakai for a peace deal. All sides agreed to halt further attacks. The peace pact saw the release of hundreds of kidnapped persons and surrendering of weapons.

The Yan Sakai, accused of carrying out extra judicial executions of suspected armed bandits, agreed stop attacks on Fulani especially in rural markets. The Fulani bandits on the other hand agreed to allow farmers largely of  Hausa extraction to work on their farms.

A lull prevailed for many months as there was no reported case ofabduction or attack on any community. However, in November last year and January this year, there were attacks on two communities in Gwalli district of Gummi LGA of the state.

Then came reported cases of kidnappings especially in Anka and Maru local government areas. The resurgence of  killings and abductions had sent jitters across the rural communities in the state.

The state commissioner for Security and Home affairs Alhaji AbubakarDauran said troops had quickly responded to the attacks and arecurrently conducting operation in the area.

The commissioner, who blamed the renewed attacks on bandits that crossed into Zamfara State from neighbouring Kaduna and Niger states,promised that very soon the situation would be brought undercontrol.