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Katsina State Government has stepped up its campaign against banditry with the deployment of 23 Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs), 200 pickup trucks, motorcycles, drones and other surveillance equipment to security agencies operating across the state.

The security build-up, described by government officials as part of a multidimensional strategy to tackle insecurity, also includes the establishment of a 10,000-member Community Watch Corps to complement the efforts of conventional security forces.

The state government has supplied much of the equipment to the military, police and other security agencies, while also strengthening intelligence gathering and community-based surveillance across the 34 local government areas.

Officials said the acquisition and deployment of the security hardware were being coordinated under the supervision of the Government House, with the objective of improving the capacity of security agencies to respond rapidly to attacks and disrupt bandit operations.

The initiative came against the backdrop of persistent banditry in parts of Katsina, particularly in forested and rocky areas where criminal groups have established hideouts and used difficult terrain to evade security forces.

A major component of the strategy has been increased collaboration with the Nigerian Air Force in intelligence gathering, aerial surveillance and precision operations against bandit camps.

In August 2025, the Air Force raided a bandit hideout at Pauwa Hill in Kankara Local Government Area, rescuing 76 people.

Under Operation Fansan Yamma, the Air Force also destroyed a bandit hideout at Danfako in Faskari Local Government Area in November 2025 following intelligence obtained through surveillance.

The Director of Public Relations and Information of the Nigerian Air Force, Ehimen Ejodame, had said the operation was based on intelligence gathered through surveillance.

According to a statement signed on Tuesday by Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Nasir Dan Musa, another major operation was recorded in May 2026 when the Air Force destroyed a logistics hub at Dan-Aji Forest.

Beyond military operations, the state has also intensified surveillance along major highways, including the deployment of officers of the Nigeria Immigration Service to monitor the movement of persons, particularly aliens.

The surveillance is considered important because Katsina shares an international border with the Niger Republic, making its major routes vulnerable to the movement of criminal elements and illegal arms and logistics.

He said the state government has also adopted a security classification system that divides the 34 local government areas into three categories – frontline, vulnerable and crisis-free areas.

Dan Musa, said the classification was designed to ensure that security resources, personnel and equipment were deployed according to the level of threat in each area.

He said; “Eight local government areas – Jibia, Batsari, Safana, Dan Musa, Faskari, Sabuwa, Kankara and Sandamu – have been classified as frontline areas because of the intensity of bandit activities.

“Eleven others are classified as vulnerable, while 15 are regarded as crisis-free”.

Musa explained that the government’s strategy was based on the understanding that banditry was largely community-driven and could not be effectively tackled through the deployment of conventional security forces alone.

He said communities were therefore being placed at the centre of the security architecture through intelligence gathering, surveillance and rapid-response mechanisms.

The Commissioner said the strategy was aimed at disrupting the logistics networks supporting criminal groups and ensuring that intelligence from local communities reached security agencies promptly.

The government, he said has also expanded its engagement with traditional rulers, religious leaders, community leaders, academics and security experts in an effort to improve coordination and strengthen local participation in the fight against insecurity.

“The initiative includes a Security Advisory Committee and a Peace Committee established in each of the 34 local government areas.

“The committees are expected to provide local intelligence, advise on emerging security threats and facilitate engagement between communities and security agencies.

“The deployment of APCs, patrol vehicles, drones and surveillance systems, alongside the Community Watch Corps and community-based intelligence structures, marks a significant expansion of Katsina’s security architecture under Governor Dikko Radda”, he added.

The strategy is designed to combine the firepower and operational capacity of conventional security agencies with the local knowledge and intelligence-gathering capacity of communities in the battle against banditry.

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Troops of the Nigerian Army have rescued nine more travellers abducted by suspected kidnappers along the Ajaokuta–Itobe road in Ofu Local Government Area of Kogi State.

The rescue came two days after a joint security team comprising military personnel, police officers, local vigilantes and hunters rescued 16 travellers abducted along the Ojuwo–Ajengo–Memarebo and Ojiwo–Itobe roads in the state.

According to a statement by the Nigerian Army, the latest operation was conducted by troops deployed at Patrol Base Itobe after receiving reports that suspected kidnappers had ambushed commuters and abducted several passengers along the route.

The troops, on arriving at the scene, discovered a Toyota Hiace bus and a Toyota Sienna vehicle abandoned by the roadside, with their passengers missing.

The Army said the troops immediately launched a pursuit operation, exploiting the route used by the fleeing kidnappers.

The pursuit led the troops to the outskirts of Adumu community in Dekina Local Government Area, where they made contact with the kidnappers.

“During the ensuing firefight, the troops overwhelmed the criminals with superior firepower, compelling them to abandon their captives and flee into the surrounding bush with suspected gunshot wounds,” the statement said.

The operation resulted in the rescue of nine victims comprising two elderly men, two elderly women, four other adult males and an infant.

The Army said the rescued victims were immediately evacuated to safety before being handed over to the Nigeria Police, Itobe Area Command, for further action and reunification with their families.

It added that troops had sustained the pursuit of the fleeing kidnappers, while coordinated search operations continued to rescue any remaining victims and apprehend those responsible for the attack.

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Former Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola, says he has never been intimate with any other woman since he married his wife, Sherifat.

The national secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), stated this while speaking at a recent rally in Ejigbo LGA, ahead of the Osun State gubernatorial election.

Aregbesola said his fidelity was part of a personal test he set for himself, adding that his devotion is solely to God.

He noted that his stance is not common among many men, and that he had used it as a basis for a divine request.

“Oh Lord my God, if you are the one I am serving, and I did not add any other thing to it. What I am about to say, only a few men can say it: Because of your fear, I never had any intimacy with another woman since I married my wife,” Aregbesola said.