Killings: Niger govt pushes for deployment of troops to communities

The Niger State government on Saturday urged the Nigeria Army to redeploy troops to communities prone to terrorist attacks in the state.

The state’s Acting Governor, Mr. Yakubu Garba, made the call at a three-day Fidda’u prayer for 13 farmers killed by bandits in the Shiroro local government area of the state.

Gunmen had on Wednesday ambushed the farmers on their way to the farms in Anguwan village and shot them dead.

Garba said the withdrawal of troops from Allawa and other communities had weakened the government’s efforts to tackle insecurity in the state.

READ ALSO: Gunmen kill DPO, four other police officers in Niger

He said: “I want to appeal to our military to see reasons to go back to Allawa and other vulnerable areas to give full security cover to our people who are predominantly farmers.”

The deputy governor said the Mohammed Bago-led administration had deployed strategies to end insecurity in the state.

He added that the strategies had ensured the safety of commuters along Kuta, Gwada, Zumba, and Erena roads in Shiroro LGA.

He said the victims were displaced farmers who left the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps in the state.

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