Terror swept through parts of Niger State again on Tuesday as heavily armed gunmen stormed border communities in Borgu and Agwara, forcing thousands of terrified residents to flee into the Benin Republic.
The latest Niger terror attack came barely 24 hours after Governors Umaru Bago of Niger and Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq of Kwara State met in Minna to review security in border towns.
Eyewitnesses said more than 200 terrorists riding about 70 motorcycles invaded Konkoso in the early hours of Tuesday, their second assault within a week. Homes were set ablaze before the attackers moved towards Segbana, a border town linking Nigeria and Benin.
Police outposts previously destroyed by the insurgents have left the area without security presence. Residents say the attackers have now established a base in Konkoso after five days of sustained violence that reportedly killed over 50 people and saw women and children abducted.
The Nigerian Senate condemned the killings of 56 residents and demanded urgent security reforms. Senator Sani Musa warned that strategic forests linking neighbouring states are being exploited as terror corridors.
Meanwhile, the United Nations says more than 3.7 million Nigerians are internally displaced due to rising insecurity.
Mohamed Malick Fall, UN Assistant Secretary-General, disclosed the figure at a policy launch in Abuja, warning that displacement now threatens economic stability, food security and national cohesion.
Governors Dikko Umaru Radda of Katsina State and Dauda Lawal of Zamfara State called for long-term recovery strategies anchored on security, livelihoods and reintegration.
Amid the escalating crisis, Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Kayode Egbetokun met former police chiefs under Aliyu Attah to strengthen institutional response. He pledged improved professionalism, intelligence coordination and capacity building within the force.
The renewed Niger terror attack underscores mounting pressure on Nigeria’s security architecture, even as international collaboration efforts continue in the north.
