Bandits have launched a fresh wave of attacks on communities in the Sabon-Birni Local Government Area of Sokoto State, killing a community leader and abducting several residents. On Friday, February 6, 2026, gunmen invaded the Kiratawa community, where they shot and killed the local Imam. Following the murder, the attackers moved toward the Takatsaba route and set up an ambush at Dangulbi Bridge, where they shot another person before security forces arrived and forced them to flee.
The violence continued on Saturday when bandits stormed Fadamar Tarah, another community in the same local government area. During this raid, three people were kidnapped, including a pregnant woman. These back-to-back incidents have shattered a period of relative peace in the area, which had been calm since security forces killed a notorious bandit leader known as Kallamu, a top lieutenant to the infamous kingpin Bello Turji, in late 2025.
Bakatsine, a well-known security expert and journalist in the Northwest, reported these incidents on social media, expressing concern that the area may be seeing a resurgence of atrocities by Turji’s loyalists. The attacks have triggered widespread fear among residents in Sokoto East, with many worried that the “cycle of violence” is returning despite recent military successes in the region. Local communities are now calling for increased security patrols to prevent further kidnappings and killings along the busy transit routes.
