A coordinated counter-terror operation by the Nigerian Army, the Department of State Services, and local vigilante groups has left at least 24 bandits dead after security forces foiled a large-scale kidnapping attempt in Gidan Bawa village, Kandarawa Ward, Bakori Local Government Area of Katsina State on Tuesday.
According to a security source familiar with the operation, the successful interception was the result of sustained intelligence-gathering that exposed a plot by roughly 40 armed men to storm the village and seize residents en masse.
The gunmen are said to be loyal to notorious bandit kingpin Isiya Kwashen Garwa, whose network has long terrorised communities across Nigeria’s North-West.bb
Security sources indicated that the planned raid was designed to mirror the recent mass abduction in Woro community, Kwara State, in what appeared to be a deliberate attempt to humiliate the government and expose gaps in rural security.
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Acting on the credible tip-off, DSS operatives quickly mobilised a joint response force, drawing in fighters from the Katsina Community Watch Corps and the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) stationed at the Guga camp. The combined team laid an ambush along the bandits’ anticipated route of advance and engaged them in a fierce firefight as they approached the village.
By the end of the operation 24 bandits were neutralised in the exchange of fire, abducted villagers were rescued and reunited with their community while19 head of cattle, previously rustled from residents, were recovered.
The security source confirmed that operations are ongoing to track down members of the gang who escaped the ambush, with troops and vigilantes combing surrounding forests and known bandit corridors.
The successful operation is being hailed as a significant boost for community-based security cooperation in Katsina State, where synergy between conventional forces, intelligence agencies, and local vigilantes has increasingly become the cornerstone of the fight against rural banditry.
Authorities have urged residents to continue providing timely information to security agencies, stressing that intelligence sharing remains the most effective weapon against the kidnapping syndicates operating across the North-West.
Crediblenewsng.com
