Residents of Kebbe Local Government Area in northwest Nigeria’s Sokoto State have called on authorities to allow them to bear arms to defend themselves against relentless attacks by armed groups that have displaced most of their communities.
The residents said they were “tired of the incessant killings, kidnappings, and destruction” that have devastated their villages and forced thousands to flee.
“Out of the 17 communities in Kebbe Local Government Area, bandits have already displaced residents from at least 11 following repeated attacks,” a local leader, Tukur Muhammad Fakum, told the BBC.
Fakum said the situation had reached a breaking point. “We are now holding meetings. Those with small farms have sold them, and those with small houses have sold them, too,” he said. “If we can buy guns, we’ll give them to our youth so they can try to protect us.”
He urged the government to either protect them or grant permission for residents to defend themselves. “The government should protect us, but if it cannot, then it should allow us to own weapons so our youths can defend their lives and communities,” Fakum said.
He described the humanitarian toll as severe. “There is no food. People who have never spent the night in a mosque are now forced to sleep there. You wake up and move to a place you’ve never been before just to find safety. The situation is terrible,” he added.
Economic activities in the area have largely collapsed due to the insecurity, residents said.
Efforts by the BBC to obtain comments from Sokoto State officials and security agencies were unsuccessful.
Sokoto, one of Nigeria’s states worst affected by banditry, has faced recurring assaults in areas such as Isa, Sabon Birni, and Kebbe. Armed groups loyal to notorious warlord Bello Turji operate widely across the state.
Security analysts say a newly emerged militia, known as the Lakurawa fighters, could pose an additional threat to Sokoto and the wider North West region, already wracked by years of violence.