‘They kidnap people, then leave’: inside Nigeria’s bandit crisis

Additional reporting by Freddie Gower

Arriving in Sokoto, in Nigeria’s far northwest, you’d think there was a war going on. Armoured vehicles and guns trucks zoom through dusty streets. Women and children – refugees we’re told – beg on the streets.

But these people, who’ve flocked to unofficial IDP camps in recent years, haven’t fled from foreign invaders – they’ve been forced off their farmlands by ruthless bandit groups who terrorise the surrounding countryside.

“The bandits come, they kidnap people, then leave. We have nothing to give in exchange for anyone’s release.” Zuweira tells us. She came with her seven children a year ago, she says, after her husband and three brothers all died in a wave of bandit attacks. One was murdered in front of her.

“After he was shot, he begged for water as he was dying” she says. “The bandits were angry and refused to let him have any. We were begging for my brother’s life but they just ignored us.”

Her story is all too common. Banditry has been booming in Nigeria in recent years, and northwestern regions like Sokoto, Kaduna and Zamfara among the hardest-hit. The insecurity has fundamentally reshaped this part of the country, with many people from rural communities now seeking shelter in cities until it’s safe to return. Conditions in the camps though, are poor. People like Zuweira rely on donations, and the money her children make from begging.

“If peace is restored, I will go back to the village,” Zuweira tells us. “I don’t belong here, and we could be kicked out at any moment.”

For now though, the situation in northwest Nigeria is only getting hotter. Research by SBM Intelligence, a Nigerian security consultancy, found a staggering 7,568 people were kidnapped between July 2023 and June 2024. In the impoverished north, where the bulk of kidnappings take place, the total surpassed the previous two years combined. Analysts believe there could be many more cases which go unreported.

Now, Nigerian government forces are attempting to strike back, with fresh operations designed to upend the deadly status quo, and restore stability in one of Africa’s most dangerous regions.

Their campaign, Operation Hadarin Daji, means something close to ‘disruption’ in the Hausa language. We’re the first foreign journalists invited to join their patrols. A joint task force involving the Nigerian Army, Air Force, police, civil defence and state-supported vigilante groups, its aim is to impose the rule of law on communities that have become grimly accustomed to terrifying bandit raids.

We head north to one such village, Gidan Bakuso, close to the border with Niger.

Banditry is booming in Nigeria – with thousands kidnapped for ransom.

Just days ago, gunmen on motorbikes kidnapped at least 46 people in the north western Zamfara state.

Channel 4 News are the first foreign journalists granted access to the Nigerian army’s anti-banditry… pic.twitter.com/xo3KXXlauy

— Channel 4 News (@Channel4News) January 8, 2025

Travelling on bumpy, dirt roads in an armoured personnel carrier, escorted by four gun trucks, it’s clear the army are at a disadvantage in this part of the world. Bandits are highly mobile; appearing from the bush on motorbikes and melting away in a matter of minutes.

“They came and woke us in the night,” says Liman, a local teacher. “The children were crying hysterically. When they realised they couldn’t take all of us at once, they chose a few of the children and took them away.”

The Islamic school he runs here in the village was raided last year. Fifteen students were kidnapped, all – fortunately – rescued in a military operation. 18-year-old Awaisu is clearly still shaken by the ordeal.

“For two weeks, they would beat us every day,” he tells us, his voice quiet. “My feet were damaged from the beatings. Sometimes, they beat me so much I’d pass out.”

While the locals here in Gidan Bakuso welcome the sight of a military patrol, the army can’t be here all the time. Once the soldiers leave, they’re just as vulnerable as ever.

“It’s like the country is divided now,” Liman says. “Other parts of the country are at peace, but here we are living in a state of conflict.”

This is a conflict, make no mistake about it. Bandits regularly engage army patrols in firefights, and a military convoy was ambushed just days before our arrival by a local warlord Bello Turji, said to command thousands of men.

“We’re having casualties,” says Flight Lieutenant Zakari. “A lot of comrades have paid the ultimate price, but it’s what we signed up for. We hope at least that when we pay the price it’s for people to live in peace.”

But peace in this part of the world can’t be won on the battlefield alone.

The spike in banditry is fuelled by complex and deep-rooted issues, including a crisis-ridden economy failing to provide jobs and prosperity, a huge number of illegal weapons flowing into the country, and ethnic tensions between the nomadic Fulani people (the most predominant ethnicity among bandits) and the largely agricultural Hausa.

Ongoing Islamic insurgencies to the east mean the military’s resources are spread even thinner, and contribute to a wider security challenge for the government.

Whatever success the army achieves – whether it’s killing bandit leaders or building its network of trusted vigilantes and informants – the road to stability in northwest Nigeria is certain to be a long one.