Reps Demand Military Operation As Bandits Kill Immigration Officers In Kebbi

The House of Representatives has called for an urgent military operation to clear the Soda Forest and Hills in Bagudo and Suru local government areas of Kebbi, following the attack and killing of Nigeria Immigration Service officers around the area.

It urged the Nigerian Air Force, Nigerian Army, Nigeria Police Force and all Security and Intelligence Agencies to carry out clearance operations at the Soda Forest in Bagudo and the Hills in Suru, as well as the entire Kebbi state, to bring an end to banditry in the state.

This followed the adoption of a motion of urgent importance moved by Hon. Bello Ka’oje from Kebbi State at the plenary session on Wednesday.

Moving the motion, Ka’oje explained that Bagudo LGA in Kebbi State shares an external boundary with the Republic of Benin and hosts a Nigerian Immigration Service outpost at Bakin Ruwa, a Nigerian Customs Service outpost at Maje, and several Nigerian Police posts in various parts of the area.

He noted that recently, Bagudo and Kebbi, as a whole, have witnessed attacks by armed bandits in different parts of the state, among other states in the federation.

The lawmaker informed that on Thursday last week, the Lakurawa bandits attacked a Nigeria Immigration Service outpost at Bakin Ruwa, which led to the death of three personnel of the Service.

Ka’oje stated that the very attack is similar to an earlier one on a Nigeria Customs Service outpost at Maje in the same Bagudo LGA on November 10, 2025, which left one Customs Officer dead.
He also informed that on October 19, 2025, bandits attacked a Nigerian Police outpost at Maje, Bagudo LGA, Kebbi state and killed one Police Officer.

Ka’oje expressed concern that there appears to be an attempt by the Lakurawa Bandits to turn the Soda Forest, Bagudo, into a hideout and base from which they will carry out their destructive activities.

“The bandits are similarly making the hills in Suru L.G.A, Kebbi State, another operational base where they hide their victims when they kidnap them from other parts of Kebbi North.

“The worsening security situation in the once relatively peaceful Kebbi State, which needs to be tackled immediately to prevent further escalation of banditry activities and attacks,” he lamented.

Adopting the motion, the House requested that the Department of State Services (DSS) and the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) strengthen intelligence coordination and cross-border surveillance along the Nigeria–Benin Republic corridor, particularly within the Bagudo LGA, Kebbi State axis.