Residents of Niger North Senatorial District of Niger State have held a special prayer session at Eid Prayer ground in Kontagora, the headquarters of Kontagora Local Government Area of the State, to seek Allah’s intervention against persistent bandit attacks on farming communities in the area.

The affected areas including Magama, Mariga, Rijau, Borgu, Kontagora and Mashegu have faced frequent attacks in the last few weeks, forcing dozens of residents, especially women and children, to flee their homes.

The situation had led residents to seek divine intervention against the persistent insecurity situation in the area.

One of the internally displaced persons who wished to remain anonymous told Daily Trust that the prayer was attended by hundreds of Muslim faithful from affected communities in Kontagora, Mashegu, Rijau and Magama.

“Hundreds of us assembled at the Eid Prayer ground in Kontagora to pray against the bandits, their informants and even their sponsors. We also used the opportunity to pray Allah to protect our security operatives and grant them success against the adversaries,” he said.

Some residents also told Daily Trust that they fled their homes in the rain around 10pm on Tuesday when bandits invaded their Communities.

Communities affected were Genu, Warari, Shambo, Sabon-Gari, Dukku, Tungan-Buni as well as villages surrounding Rijau and Magajiya.

Fleeing residents who spoke with Daily Trust said they slept on mountains while some people had moved to Kontagora.

“Bandits came to Shambo in the afternoon on Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. We have all fled since Saturday. But few of us checked in today (Wednesday) and saw how they broke many shops and houses. We saw one dead body but he is not from Shambo. May be he was just passing and had an encounter with them and he was killed.

“Some people have been sleeping on mountains while some have moved to other towns. Our farms that are due for harvesting are being destroyed by bandits,” one of the fleeing residents told Daily Trust over the telephone.

In Shambo, a fleeing resident stated that many houses and shops had been destroyed.

The victims said bandits had not only stopped them from harvesting their crops, but also grazed rustled cattle on their farms, destroying their crops that were due for harvesting.

However, a resident from Kontagora, Comrade Zakari Y. Adamu, said air strikes conducted by the Nigerian Air Force resulted in the death of many terrorists who were moving in large number.

He said the operation was conducted around Yabawa, Bazana, Awallah, Dankolo, Kumbashi, and up to Kakihum communities, when the bandits were sighted moving with dozens of cattle they rustled from Ragada and adjoining villages in Mariga LGA. (Weekend Trust)