20 soldiers, scores of bandits die in Niger clash,
…We lost 17 men —Army
…Military to deploy 800 special forces to high-risk combat zones
By Kingsley Omonobi & Wole Mosadomi
Minna—No fewer than 20 soldiers were reportedly killed by bandits, who stormed two military camps in Mariga Local Government Area of Niger State on Tuesday while several others were injured.
However, an unspecified number of the bandits were gunned down by the soldiers during the gun battle that ensued.
But the army said 17 soldiers were killed in the encounter.
Seventeen corpses of the soldiers were, however, said to have been recovered from the bush while the search for the recovery of others continues.
This came as the Chief of Defence Staff, CDS, Gen. Christopher Musa, at a different event, said the military was set to deploy over 800 well-trained and combat-ready special forces into operational areas to tackle a myriad of security challenges facing the nation.
Vanguard gathered that the bandits numbering over 200 rode on motorcycles and invaded two military camps in Kwanan Duse and Gulbin Boka communities in Mariga council of the state in the morning.
According to a source from the area, the bandits’ first point of call was the military camp at Kwanan Duse, where they engaged the security men in a fierce gun battle, which lasted for about four hours.
It was gathered that the chairman of the Mariga council, Abbas Adamu, immediately alerted the Military Cantonment in Kontagora for reinforcement, while the gun battle at Kwanan Duse was going on.
In a swift response, the soldiers from Kontagora took off but before their arrival at the Kwanan Dutse camp, the bandits had left for Gulbin Boka camp for another onslaught against the soldiers.
However, the soldiers engaged the bandits in a fierce gun battle at Gulbin Boka camp where some of the bandits were felled by the bullets.
Adamu, who confirmed the incident said the gunmen were suspected to have invaded the state from Zamfara, through the Shadadi forest.
He said: “We got the information about their movement and we immediately alerted the Military but we did not actually know where they were heading to.
“Surprisingly, about 9:30a.m., on Tuesday, we learnt they were already attacking the soldiers at Kwanan Duse.
“The bandits did not kidnap anybody but lives were lost, shops looted at Gulbin Boka town while several cattle were rustled from the neighbouring communities.
“From all indications, the aim of the bandits was to dislodge the military from their camps and have unhindered access to some communities in the council because since the soldiers were stationed there, the bandits have been prevented from frequent attacks on the communities.”
Head of vigilante group in the area, Mallam Abubakar Sani also confirmed the incident but could not ascertain the casualty figure on the side of the bandits.
Meanwhile, the military in conjunction with the local vigilante have mobilised to Gulbin Boka forest along Kontagora-Rijau road suspected to be the hideouts of the bandits.
At press time, no official statement has been issued by either the state government or the military.
We lost 17 men —Army
Lieutenant Colonel Apolonia Anele, Acting Director, Army Public Relations in a statement, said that the troops in collaboration with the Air Component of the Nigerian Air Force, engaged bandits numbering over 300 in Kwanar Dutse Forest.
He said: “Sadly 17 brave and gallant soldiers paid the supreme price during the encounter, while 10 others sustained varying degrees of injury.
“The wounded personnel have been evacuated to a military medical facility, where they are receiving treatment and are in stable condition.”
Military set to deploy 800 special forces to high-risk combat zones
This is just as the Minister of Defence, Badaru Abubakar tasked the military to align its training modules with national security objectives.
General Musa spoke in Abuja at the Defence Training Conference 2025, saying: “Sometime next week, we will be graduating the first 800 special forces team trained to face the challenges we are undergoing and the training is very comprehensive.
“We have realised that deploying them in pieces also creates that weakness that we see. We will be deploying them together, a force that stays together that will understand each other. Because from experience, a fighting force must be able to understand themselves.”
Noting that the conference was organised as a critical part of shared commitment to building a professional and combat-ready force that is well equipped to navigate the evolving operational landscape, the CDS said the mission was aimed to create a unified training system that is adaptable, technological-driven, economical, and mission driven.
He said: “There is a need for collaboration and cooperation of all services working together. Looking at our operational operating environment, there is the evidence that the threats we face are increasingly complex, asymmetrical, and technology-guided issues.
“These threats range from a persistent scourge of insurgency and terrorism to the rise of cyber warfare, hybrid traits, and proliferation of advanced weaponry.”
“We are also witnessing a rapid integration of artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, advance surveillance technology and sophisticated electronic cyber warfare.”
Emphasizing the need for the military to understand the enemy it is dealing with to prepare for emerging challenges, Musa said: “The enemy we are dealing with is someone who has nothing to lose. He lives, he dies, his guilt goes with him.”
On his part, Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru, urged the military to ensure that troops training aligns with Nigeria’s national security objectives to defeat the enemies of the state.
He said addressing the country’s security threats required the military to adopt forward-looking strategies based on rigorous training, inter-agency coordination, and real-time adaptation to emerging doctrines and technologies.
The post 20 soldiers, scores of bandits die in Niger clash appeared first on Vanguard News.
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No fewer than 20 soldiers were reportedly killed by bandits, who stormed two military camps in Mariga Local Government Area of Niger State on Tuesday while several others were injured.
The post 20 soldiers, scores of bandits die in Niger clash appeared first on Vanguard News.
, , Idowu Bankole, {authorlink},, , Vanguard News, June 26, 2025, 2:58 am
