Armed bandits have blocked the Gusau-Funtua highway, kidnapping an unspecified number of travelers, prompting military intervention.

[dropcap]A[/dropcap]rmed bandits have attacked the busy Gusau-Funtua highway, creating a blockade and kidnapping an unspecified number of travelers. The incident occurred in the early hours of Thursday at the Tazame axis of the road.

Commuter Yusuf Tsafe, who remains stranded in the area, reported that the bandits arrived on approximately 50 motorcycles, with three individuals on each.

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They set up the roadblock around 7 am and were still active at 9 am, abducting people and taking them into the bush.

“We just parked by the roadside, waiting for the military to clear the road,” Tsafe stated. He mentioned hearing gunfire from military gun trucks sent to the scene, but the road remains closed to other vehicles.

Another commuter confirmed that the Magazu-Kucheri Road, linking Gusau to Funtua, has also been blocked by bandits. “The military asked us to stop because the bandits blocked the road,” they reported.

When contacted, ASP Yazid Abubakar, the spokesperson for the Zamfara State Police Command, stated that additional troops, including operatives from the Nigerian Police Mobile Squad, have been deployed to the affected areas to clear the road.

Zamfara is among several states in northwestern and central Nigeria plagued by armed gangs conducting mass abductions for ransom, alongside burning and looting homes. These gangs operate from camps in the vast forests spanning Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna, and Niger states and have increasingly targeted schools in large-scale kidnappings in recent years.

Recent reports indicate that bandit attacks have intensified, particularly in Katsina and Zamfara states. Last month, gangs raided four villages in Katsina state’s Sabuwa district, resulting in the deaths of 25 people, mostly local vigilantes, in apparent retaliation against military actions on their hideouts.

Although bandits lack an ideological motive, they are primarily driven by financial gain. However, concerns have been raised about their growing alliances with jihadists engaged in a 15-year armed rebellion in the northeast.