Nigeria and its neighbours in Chad and Niger have launched a joint military offensive against the Lakurawa terrorist group.
It is understood that the countries’ forces have commenced joint patrols to contain cross-border threats posed by the Lakurawa terrorist group.
The new terrorist group is affiliated with terrorists in the Sahel, particularly from Mali and Niger Republic. It has been linked to heinous criminal activities in the northern part of Nigeria and its neighbours. The group’s activities intensified after the coup in Niger, and they have been responsible for several attacks, including a recent explosion in Zamfara State.
The Lakurawa group is a Mali-based terrorist organization known in the Sahel as Jama’atu Muslimina. The group’s leader, Ahmadu Kofa, has ancestors originally from Nigeria, specifically from the Kebbi Empire. The group has been planning to establish its caliphate for over 25 years, a researcher with the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, Dr Murtala Rufa’i, said.
The Lakurawa group has been attacking villages to collect taxes and has set up camps in 10 Local Government Areas of Sokoto and Bauchi states before its operations became known to the public weeks ago.
The Nigerian Defence Headquarters, in November, announced the emergence of the sect, which the military said operates mainly in Sokoto and Kebbi states.
