On the night of January 5, 2025, residents of Gana Town in Zamfara State were plunged into terror when gunmen stormed the community, abducting at least 46 people, including women and children. The devastating raid, which took place around 10 PM, left the once-peaceful town reeling in fear and uncertainty.
Though the authorities have yet to officially confirm the incident, the chilling details have emerged through eyewitness accounts and testimonies from local leaders. Alhaji Garba Haure, a respected traditional ruler in the area, provided a harrowing description of the violence that unfolded in the hours following the raid.
In an exclusive interview, Haure revealed, “We have 46 men, women, and children that have been abducted altogether, and we are still counting. The gunmen arrived on motorbikes and started shooting at random while setting fire to homes and businesses. It was sheer chaos.”
The gunmen, believed to be part of a notorious bandit group that has terrorized the region for years, reportedly arrived in droves and seized the unsuspecting community by surprise. Their swift and brutal attack sparked widespread panic, as families scrambled for safety in the midst of gunfire and raging flames.
“Some homes were completely destroyed by the fire,” Haure continued. “We are fortunate that the quick intervention of security forces helped prevent further destruction. At least, no lives were lost during the raid.”
However, another resident, Bala Harauma, expressed doubts about the exact number of victims, suggesting that the full scale of the abduction may not yet be known. “Six people managed to escape while the armed gang moved the captives in the early hours of Monday,” Harauma reported. “The number of those taken could be higher than what has been reported.”
In addition to the human toll, the gunmen also wreaked havoc on the town’s economy by targeting food silos and other vital infrastructure. Yusuf Mohammed, another witness to the attack, shared details about the economic destruction. “Dozens of houses and silos containing essential foodstuffs were set ablaze. It’s hard to believe what has happened. This community has suffered a great loss,” Mohammed explained.
While the authorities have yet to issue an official statement on the events, the outcry from locals has been loud and clear. Calls for greater security and accountability from both state and federal governments are mounting, as the region’s residents feel abandoned by the authorities in the face of increasing attacks by bandits.
The rising wave of insecurity in Zamfara State is not an isolated incident. Gana Town is one of several communities in northern Nigeria grappling with frequent raids by heavily armed bandits who have disrupted everyday life in rural areas. These criminals are known to target both local villagers and those traveling through the region, leading to widespread fear and hardship.
The persistence of these attacks has drawn national attention, as the Nigerian government has struggled to contain the rise of banditry and insurgency in the country’s northwest. President Bola Tinubu has repeatedly promised to tackle insecurity head-on, but progress has been slow, with sporadic efforts by military and law enforcement agencies failing to curb the escalating violence.
In a recent interview with Reuters, Alhaji Garba Haure called on the government to take swift action in addressing the growing threat in the region. “We are asking the government to send more security personnel to this region. We cannot continue to live in constant fear for our lives,” he urged. “People can no longer sleep peacefully at night, not knowing whether their loved ones will be kidnapped or killed in cold blood.”
The Nigerian military has deployed troops to several parts of Zamfara to quell the tide of violence, but the efforts have had limited success. Local residents claim that while security forces have managed to repel some bandit attacks, the heavy presence of armed groups continues to threaten the peace of the region.
In recent weeks, bandits have become increasingly bold, launching ambushes on villages, looting cattle, kidnapping citizens for ransom, and sometimes burning down entire settlements in retaliation for resistance. Gana Town’s traumatic ordeal is the latest in a series of attacks that have left communities in northern Nigeria deeply shaken.
As the residents of Gana begin to pick up the pieces of their shattered lives, the pain of loss still lingers, with some families wondering if their loved ones will ever return home. The authorities have yet to secure the release of the 46 victims, raising questions about the effectiveness of rescue operations in the face of sophisticated criminal networks operating in the area.
