16 Days In Northwest Nigeria: Excerpts From A Conflict Reporter’s Diary

Between May 31 and June 16, 2021, this journalist visited different communities in Sokoto, Zamfara, and Katsina to document how rising insecurity was affecting people’s lives. Here he gives a glimpse into his journal. The day is Sunday, May 30, 2021. I’ll be going to the field again. And this time to another part of …

The Anatomy Of A Terror Attack In Northwest Nigeria

Reconstructing a typical terrorist attack based on interviews with dozens of victims across three states in the region. It all started 11 years ago, or six, or maybe more recently — depending on what community you are from and how soon they got to you. Before that, you had not grown accustomed to the explosive …

Food Prices Are Shooting Up In Northwest Nigeria, And There’s One Prime Suspect

More farmers are downing tools, fearing they may become victims of terror attacks. As a result, food items are scarcer, driving prices through the roof — beyond the reach of the poor. When Esther Maiwada moved to Gusau, capital of the northwestern state of Zamfara, nine years ago, one measure of maize was sold for …

Death, Starvation, New Terror Recruits … Aftermath Of Borno’s IDP Resettlement

The government insists it is resettling the displaced people for their good, but so far it hasn’t seemed that way. For many of the returnees, almost everything that could go wrong has. When Gambo Muhammad, 72, left his hometown of Sidiya Kari in Kala Balge, Northeast Nigeria, he felt he had no other choice. Rampaging terrorists …

Nigeria’s Intention For IDPs And How It Treats Them Are Miles Apart

IDPs should not have to struggle to access basic resources or fear that their rights would be violated — if only the country implemented a better part of its own policy. Since it returned to democratic rule in 1999, Nigeria has faced a steady rise in the number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). Ethnic fault …

Nearly 10,400 Killed In Nigeria In 2021, Worst Toll In 6 Years

Likewise, victims of kidnapping in the country were over 5,000 last year — equally the worst rate since 2015 at least. In 2021, Nigeria recorded its worst insecurity-related death toll since 2016, an analysis of data collected by the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) has shown. At least 10,398 persons were killed across the country between Jan. …

Guilty Until Proven Innocent: How Nigeria Further Preyed On Terror Victims

It took three to six years of agonising detention and total separation from their families for Mu’azu and Muhammad to be “cleared” as having nothing to do with the notorious terror group, Boko Haram. The people of Andara, a town in Northeast Nigeria, were worried sick when Boko Haram invaded in 2014 and started dictating how …

Her Husband’s Death ‘At The Hands Of Nigerian Soldiers’ Drove Her Crazy — Literally

The Boko Haram insurgency in Nigeria’s Northeast is taking a toll on victims’ mental health, and this is not receiving as much attention. Saraya’s life took a turn for the worse when her partner was killed in 2014. She had been happily married to Awaza for three years, and they both lived quietly in Taradan, …

Igbo Passengers Attacked In Jos? No, Pictures From Zimbabwe, Southern Nigeria

The police command in Plateau State, North-central Nigeria, has also debunked the misleading claim. About four pictures went viral on Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 29, with the claim that they depicted an attack in Jos, North-central Nigeria, involving between 230 and 250 Igbo passengers. But the images are not recent and were shot in unrelated circumstances. …

Education Suffers Silently But Heavily As Terror Sweeps Through Northwest Nigeria

For a region already grappling with high numbers of out-of-school children, the emergence of terror gangs is making schools less conducive for learning and parents less able to afford the costs of educating their children. At first, the staff and students at Sultan Muhammad Tambari Arabic Secondary School in Illela, Sokoto State, were disappointed when …