CSW joins CSW-Nigeria in condemning attacks in Zangon Kataf and Kauru LGAs

CSW has joined CSW-Nigeria (CSW-N) in condemning attacks in the Zangon Kataf and Kauru Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Kaduna State.

Six people were killed in an attack on the Takanai community in Zangon Kataf LGA in southern Kaduna on 26 September. According to CSWN’s sources in the community, the attack took place at around 7pm and was carried out ‘by suspected armed herdsmen.’ Four of the six victims are from the same family, and four others are currently receiving treatment for injuries in hospital.

The attack on the Takanai community reportedly continued for 15 minutes, despite military men being stationed nearby.

Three more people were killed in Ungwan Magaji, Kauru LGA, also in southern Kaduna, on 29 September. Reports indicate that the victims were returning from a farm on a motorcycle at around 6pm when they were ambushed and killed.

Earlier, a woman had been killed and two of her children were kidnapped in an attack in Kaura LGA which occurred on 21 September.

CSW-Nigeria wrote that it ‘finds these killings unacceptable given that Nigeria has a functional government, avoidable given the capacity of our security men, and preventable since attacks like this have been recurring,’ adding that ‘allowing these attacks to continue poses grave danger to not only other communities in the area but also to farmers who are in the process of harvesting their crops. The implication of food security cannot be overemphasised.’

Kaduna State has witnessed a concerning uptick in violence since 2020, with reports emerging on an almost daily basis of attacks on vulnerable communities by assailants primarily of Fulani origin.

CSW’s Founder President Mervyn Thomas said: ‘CSW joins our team in Nigeria in extending our deepest condolences to the families of those who have lost loved ones in these latest attacks in southern Kaduna. Successive state and federal administrations have utterly failed to protect the people of this area for far too long, despite having both a duty and the capacity to deal with the perpetrators of this violence and safeguard Nigeria’s citizens. It is vital that members of the international community significantly increase their efforts to hold the Nigerian authorities to account at every opportunity for this failure.’