At least five Nigerian soldiers and a police officer, Inspector Aliyu Ibrahim of the 1 Police Mobile Force (PMF), Kaduna, were killed on Monday in a deadly ambush by armed bandits in Zamfara State, while several others sustained gunshot injuries.
The victims were attacked while travelling on pass to Gusau from Bingi Kwatarkwashi in Kwatarkwashi Local Government Area, according to a press statement from the 1 PMF Kaduna contingent attached to Operation Fansan Yamma (OPFYM) in Gusau.
The statement disclosed that the officers came under heavy gunfire on reaching Gidan Goni village along the Kwatarkwashi route.
“On reaching Gidan Goni Village via Kwatarkwashi, officers were ambushed and attacked by armed bandits. Inspector Ibrahim and five soldiers were shot dead, while some yet-to-be-identified personnel sustained injuries,” the statement said.
It added that the wounded personnel and the bodies of the slain officers were rushed to Yeriman Bakura Specialist Hospital, Gusau, where the injured received emergency medical care, while the corpses were deposited in the hospital’s morgue.
“The squadron is in touch with the police component of OPFY Gusau to convey the corpse to Kaduna for a befitting burial,” the statement further noted.
Authorities urged residents of the area to “remain calm” as investigations continue and more details surrounding the attack are expected.
In a detailed wireless situation report, the Command described the incident as follows:
“GOOD EVENING SIR… REGRETABLY BE INFORMED THAT TODAY MONDAY, BEING 19/01/2026 AT ABOUT 0830HRS, AP NO. 328102 INSP ALIYU IBRAHIM FROM 1 PMF KADUNA AND SOME MILITARY PERSONNEL WERE ON PASS AND ON THEIR WAY TO GUSAU… ON REACHING GIDAN GONI VILLAGE VIA KWATARKWASHI, OFFICERS WERE AMBUSHED AND ATTACKED BY ARMED BANDITS. INSPR IBRAHIM AND FIVE SOLDIERS WERE SHOT DEAD, WHILE SOME YET-TO-BE-IDENTIFIED PERSONNEL SUSTAINED INJURIES… AREA REMAIN CALM.”
The Zamfara ambush comes amid a surge in violent attacks across the North-West. SaharaReporters had earlier reported that at least seven people were killed and three others abducted in a separate bandit raid on a border community in Sokoto State, while a suspected improvised explosive device (IED) explosion left five persons seriously injured in neighbouring Zamfara State.
In the Sokoto incident, bandits reportedly stormed Kyara village in Sabon Birni Local Government Area in the early hours, killing seven residents and abducting three others. The village, located close to the Niger Republic border, was said to be remote and without mobile network coverage.
“Seven villagers were shot dead during the raid, while two others sustained gunshot injuries. An unspecified number of livestock were also rustled by the attackers,” a source said.
Security agencies are yet to issue a comprehensive update on coordinated efforts to track down the attackers behind the Zamfara ambush, as concern grows over escalating violence targeting security personnel and rural communities in the region.
