El-Rufai imposes curfew on two LGs as bandits kill villagers, raze houses in Kaduna

The Nasir Ahmad el-Rufai – led Kaduna State government on Monday imposed a 24-hour curfew on Kaura and Jema’a Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state.

This decision comes hours after bandits attacked Kagoro Chiefdom in Kaura LGA, killing at least 13 villagers while several properties were destroyed.

Samuel Aruwan, the state’s Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, announced this in a statement.

The statement said, “Following advice from security agencies, the Kaduna State government has declared a 24-hour curfew in Jema’a and Kaura local government areas with immediate effect.

“This is to assist the security agencies to stabilise the situation in the areas, save lives and property, and enable the restoration of law and order.”

The commissioner condemned the violence, including all acts of lawlessness that have occurred in the area, stressing that the government has given the security agencies full authorisation to enforce the curfew.

He called on residents in the affected local government areas to cooperate with the security agencies in a bid to restore peace and uphold law and order in the areas.

Aruwan also assured them that the government was monitoring the situation closely, stressing the need to avoid actions that could lead to a breakdown of law and order.

Residents, had earlier informed that the assailants came in a large number on Sunday after which they stuck.

Apart from the villagers killed, they were said to have ambushed and killed three soldiers who responded to a distress call and set ablaze scores of houses in Kagoro.

The Council Chairman of Kaura LGA, Matthias Siman, who also confirmed the attack put the figure of houses destroyed at over 100.

He added that the bandits invaded the community in three 18-seater buses at about 7pm on Sunday and operated till 11pm.

The council boss added that 13 corpses have been recovered so far while search and rescue operations were ongoing in the general area.

He identified the three soldiers killed as operatives attached to Operation Safe Haven who came to repel the attack.