Several Nigerian civil and security experts are raising concerns that the country could be turned upside down by militants after an airport in Kaduna state was attacked on Saturday by some 200 gunmen and the killing of an officer. The attack came after days of violent raids in the state, in which dozens of people were killed.
Saturday’s attack was the latest in several days of violence in the northwestern Nigerian state.
Federal airport officials said armed militants attacked runway five of the airport from a nearby forest and opened fire, killing one officer and delaying the flight.
Kaduna State Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, said the army was immediately deployed to the airport to stop the attack before it could escalate.
Armed gangs have been creating terror in the state for years. Over the past few weeks, dozens have been reported to have been killed in a series of attacks on local communities in the south of the state, where sectarian violence continues.
Jake Tudu, an activist in southern Kaduna, says the recent developments are worrying.
Tudu said, “I’m scared because it’s really overwhelming. These guys are doing really unimaginable things, like things you can’t believe or imagine.” “It’s really crazy and scary to come out in broad daylight to raid an airport.”
Saturday’s attack also came as top officials of the Nigerian president and his ruling political party, the All Progressive Congress (APC), hosted thousands of people in Abuja to mark the party’s convention ahead of next year’s elections, which was criticized.
Critics say the attacks exposed major failures on election promises made to Nigerians.
“Being a state that has a Nigerian Defense Academy, we have a police college, name it, Kaduna used to be a fortified ground,” Tudu said. “But now today we have these people roaming around in Kaduna and kidnapping people.”
In 2015, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari vowed to address security concerns and boost the country’s economy.
But officials are struggling to curb relentless attacks by armed gangs, which have risen to prominence since late 2020 for mass kidnappings of students and killings of local residents.
Officials say the military operation against the gangs has been successful and hundreds have been killed in recent months – the latest being the killing of more than 200 armed gangs, known locally as ‘bandits’, in central Niger state earlier this month. known as.
But while security analyst Senator Iroegbu says the military is making some progress, there is still reason to be concerned.
“The government’s claim of winning the war I’m sure is a form of inspiration,” Iroegbu said. “Yes some progress has been made but such evidence suggests that the war has not been won.”
Aid groups say that in recent years, attacks such as those in southern Kaduna have decimated communities and displaced at least 30,000 people from their homes.
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