Residents describe a deepening humanitarian crisis as some villages reportedly negotiate with armed groups for survival after repeated attacks

More than 100 communities across parts of Kaduna State have been displaced by repeated attacks from armed groups, according to community leaders, with thousands of residents forced from their homes and farmlands and some villages reportedly entering informal arrangements with the attackers in an attempt to survive.

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The affected communities span Shiroro, Kachia, Kajuru, Kagarko, Chikun and Birnin Gwari local government areas, according to findings reported by Saturday PUNCH.

The scale of the displacement remains disputed. Tabara Kato, national president of the Southern Kaduna Peoples’ Union, said more than 100 communities had been displaced and put the number of displaced residents across Kaduna at 35,402.

Luka Binniyat, a former spokesperson for SOKAPU and spokesman for the Middle Belt Forum, gave a considerably higher figure, saying about 245 communities in Southern Kaduna had been “sacked” as of June 2026 and estimating the number of internally displaced people in the area at about 150,000.

The differing figures underline the difficulty of establishing the full extent of displacement across rural communities where insecurity has disrupted access, livelihoods and, in some cases, government presence.

Among the communities identified as affected are Aduwa, Ankuro, Akama 1, Gidan Baba Mai Mota, Gidan Yaya, Gidan Waje, Impi Kuturmi, Iriyo, Idebin, Katon Bisa, Kigwali, Kintaro, Kukah, Kurmin Aja, Kurmin Taba, Maigarma, Maraba Barga, Pangyada, Akwana, Tsakiya, Unguwan Alle, Gidan Obere and Dandoka.

Others include Tosnin Dodo, Urumo, Takalafiya, Kushinda, Apele, Palapala, Ungwan Kuka, Ungwan Pah, Attara, Kurmin Jah, Kurmin Zaki, Ikubiya, Ungwan Lalle, Ungwan Alewa, Dutse, Kigwale, Ariko Village and Ungwan Toka.

The security crisis has continued despite repeated operations and engagements by security agencies.

In April, the Nigeria Police Force said it deployed its Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of Operations, Shehu Umar Nadada, to Kaduna following an attack on Ariko Village in which five people were killed and about 14 others abducted.

Seven victims were subsequently rescued in a joint operation involving the police, Nigerian Army and Department of State Services. (Police Nigeria)

The police have also reported arrests linked to banditry in Kaduna. In April, four suspected bandits were arrested in Sanga Local Government Area, with four AK-47 rifles, ammunition and a locally fabricated pistol recovered. (Police Nigeria)

But for communities repeatedly exposed to attacks, the operational successes have yet to translate into lasting security.

The latest major assault came on July 26 in Naridon Village, Kamaru Ward, Kauru Local Government Area, where at least 30 residents, including eight children, were killed after armed men invaded the community and reportedly set houses ablaze. Four other people were critically injured. (Punch Newspapers)

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu condemned the Naridon attack as a “barbaric and cowardly” act and directed the armed forces, police and intelligence agencies to intensify operations against those responsible. (State House)

For Kato, however, the violence is not simply a succession of isolated attacks.

He attributed the insecurity primarily to what he described as land grabbing and competition over natural resources, alleging that armed groups were being sponsored to drive indigenous residents from their communities.

“So far, more than 100 communities have been displaced,” Kato said, describing displaced residents as living in difficult conditions in internally displaced persons camps.

“The major cause of these attacks is land grabbing. Every other thing is just secondary to it.”

Kato further alleged that some communities had been occupied after residents were driven away and that some had subsequently been renamed.

Those claims are allegations from a community representative and have not been independently established.

The available official responses cited in the report do not substantiate the broader claims about coordinated sponsorship or mineral-driven territorial seizures.

Binniyat, meanwhile, described the displacement as creating what he called “a dangerous security vacuum now serving as a haven for terrorists and kidnappers”.

He said some displaced communities in Southern Kaduna, together with affected border communities in neighbouring Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State, had created a contiguous area of roughly 6,000 square kilometres that was increasingly difficult for government security forces to control.

He urged the Federal Government and security agencies to reclaim occupied communities, dismantle armed-group camps and create conditions for displaced residents to return safely.

The humanitarian consequences extend beyond those who have fled.

Farmers who abandoned their communities have lost access to farmland, while those who return temporarily face the risk of renewed attacks.

The disruption threatens household incomes and food production in an area where agriculture remains central to rural livelihoods.

In March, the House of Representatives also expressed concern about insecurity in Kaduna, citing a March 29 attack on Kahir community in Kagarko Local Government Area that reportedly killed 13 people, abducted about 30 residents and left at least 10 others injured.

Lawmakers said several communities in Kachia and Kagarko remained under persistent threat. (Punch Newspapers)

The situation has also produced a troubling development: communities negotiating directly with armed groups.

Findings reported by Saturday PUNCH indicate that several communities in Kachia Local Government Area have entered informal “peace” arrangements with armed groups after repeated attacks left residents with few perceived options.

Communities named by residents include Gidan Dogo, Ungwan Luka, Maikasuwa, Item, Maidorafi, Maidokufai, Mai-Goro, Gizago, Pachi, Ungwan Ranapachi, Akuru, Gidan Hassan, Gidan Ali, Aburon, Kabaude, Potai, Gidan Gaskiya, Gidan Audi, Banikanwa, Gabaciwa, Gidan Akau, Inugu, Gidan Gajere, Atufa, Gidan Burgs, Impi Kadara, Impi Kuturmi, Sabo Vida and Ungwan Gimba.

The development is not entirely new.

Reporting in March found that residents in several Kachia communities were negotiating with bandits as a survival strategy, with some fearing that such arrangements could complicate security operations and create corridors for armed groups. (Punch Newspapers)

Residents interviewed for the latest report said the terms of the arrangements varied, but included alleged demands for money, restrictions on movement, compulsory labour and other forms of coercion.

Jessy Francis, a resident of Mai-Ido Kufai, said community leaders initially believed negotiations could provide enough stability for residents to return home.

“We believed that if we reached an understanding with them, we would be able to return to our homes and continue our lives peacefully,” Francis said.

He alleged that the arrangement later failed to provide the lasting peace residents had hoped for, with claims of sexual violence and forced cultivation in some communities.

Another displaced resident, Danjuma Sunday of Mai-Goro, said he fled his community in 2021 after surviving several attacks. He now lives in Kachia with his wife and children but occasionally returns to his farm despite the risks.

Not every community has accepted negotiations.

Jashua Doka, the Village Head of Ariko, said his community resisted pressure to establish contact with armed groups.

“People kept telling us to negotiate with them, but I refused. If I negotiate with criminals and God calls me tomorrow, what explanation will I give? I fear God,” Doka said.

The contrasting responses reveal the difficult choices facing communities caught between repeated attacks and limited access to effective protection.

For some residents, negotiation represents an attempt to preserve life and livelihoods. For others, it risks legitimising criminal control over civilian territory.

The Kaduna State Government and security agencies have previously acknowledged the wider security challenge and pursued both enforcement and community engagement.

In April, senior police officers held discussions with communities and other stakeholders in Kachia, Sanga, Jere, Zango, Kajuru and Kafanchan as part of efforts to strengthen security and public confidence. (Tribune Online)

Yet the persistence of attacks shows the difficulty of translating those engagements into sustained protection in remote areas.

When contacted over the reported informal agreements, Kaduna State Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Suleiman Shuaibu, said he was unaware of the situation and would verify the claims.

“I am just hearing this from you. Can you allow me some time to verify the claims and get back to you?” he said.

Efforts to obtain a response from the Kaduna State Police Command were unsuccessful, with Police Public Relations Officer Mansir Hassan reportedly not responding to calls and a text message as of the time of filing the report.

For displaced families, the immediate issue is less about competing estimates than the reality of lives uprooted.

Homes have been abandoned, farms left uncultivated and communities fractured by fear.

As long as displaced residents remain unable to return safely, the crisis risks becoming more entrenched, while areas left without effective civilian control could provide fertile ground for further criminal activity.

The challenge for the authorities is therefore twofold: restoring security strongly enough to prevent renewed attacks and rebuilding the conditions that would allow displaced communities to return, farm and live without negotiating their safety with armed groups.

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Until that happens, the growing number of displaced communities in Kaduna will remain a stark measure of the human cost of the state’s prolonged insecurity.