Nigeria: fighter plane shot down by "bandits" raises fears of escalation
Security forces guard the public secondary school for girls where more than 300 girls were abducted by armed men, in the town of Jangebe, in Zamfara state, in northern Nigeria, Sunday February 28, 2021. AP - Ibrahim Mansur
Text by: Christina Okello
6 mins
For the first time since the appearance of the phenomenon in 2011, “
heavily armed
”
bandits
shot down a Nigerian army fighter plane on Sunday (July 18th).
The incident took place in western Nigeria, a new hotbed of insecurity in the region.
Publicity
Read more
"
This incident shows that the conflict, banditry and terrorism have taken on a new dimension,
" said Shehu Sani, former senator, after the bandits, as Nigerians call them, attacked a fighter plane.
"
The bandits have managed to amass weapons capable of destroying important targets
", continues this former legislator of the state of Kaduna, one of the five states plagued by banditry.
"
Some of them even proudly parade with their anti-aircraft missiles
," he told RFI.
Heavily armed, these men - mostly traffickers, kidnappers and cattle thieves - rained "
heavy
"
gunfire
against the military plane in Zamfara state on Sunday.
The pilot escaped the attack.
Read also Nigeria: 13 police officers killed by "bandits" in a new attack
Arms of Libya
If we do not know the models of weapons used, their provenance would be Libyan.
"
These groups profited from the proliferation of weapons during the conflict in Libya
," said Ikemesit Effiong, director of the SBM Intelligence group in Lagos.
According to the expert, the arsenal would be transported by the same route as the migrants and the goods.
It would transit through the Sahara, passing in particular through Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.
This is the first time that “bandits” have attacked Nigerian aviation and the first time that the authorities have admitted it.
New transparency
"
It is rare that the authorities communicate on burrs,
" continues Effiong.
During the war against Boko Haram, the government had always denied any attack against the police, despite the jihadists firing at planes and helicopters.
This time, difficult to impose silence.
“
The circumstances of the Sunday attack were such that they left little room for doubt,
” adds Effiong.
“
We have hard evidence.
The novelty also is that the incident took place in the north-west of Nigeria
”.
Not in the northeast, on Boko Haram lands.
Exploitation of mining resources
For ten years, bandits have swarmed in the region, mainly in the states of Katsina - city of President Muhammadu Buhari -, Kaduna, Zamfara, Kebbi and Sokoto.
“
They control places where they can easily access the mineral resources and use them to buy weapons,
” continues Effiong.
Zamfara, Sokoto and Katsina states are the center of mining where bandits can easily mine for gold and lead.
"
We see a lot of groups ready to control mining operations and then use them to fuel their criminal activities,
" adds the analyst.
These criminal activities have continued to spread since a conflict between herders and farmers started in 2011, and which would be at the origin of the banditry according to the NGO Northwest Banditry, specializing in the treatment of the roots of banditry.
At least 2,000 people have been kidnapped since January 2021 according to the analysis firm SBM Intelligence headed by Effiong, and the amount of the ransoms paid would amount to 18.43 million Naira, the local currency.
Attacks on the rise
"
The bandits reinvest the profits from the ransoms in weapons and these profits are used to strengthen their strike force and to carry out other attacks,
" explains Effiong.
If the Nigerian authorities have intensified their efforts in recent months to secure the north of the country, part of the population accuses them of having let the bandits go, although they are known to all.
"
As long as justice does not catch up with the notorious gang leaders Dan Karami, Karchallah Turji and Dogo Gide, these atrocities will not cease
," Shehu Sani wrote in a Twitter post on Sunday, about the massacre of 13 police officers in the northwest, just before the fighter plane was shot down.
The Killing of 13 Policemen in Zamfara by Bandits is another horrific and tragic act of cruelty.Untill the law catches up with the notorious gang leaders like Karami, Turji and Dogo Gide, there will be no end in sight to these atrocities. the nation's might is needed
- Senator Shehu Sani (@ShehuSani) July 19, 2021
Who is leading the bandits?
Dogo Gide is said to have ties to ISWAP, the Islamic State in West Africa.
This branch of Boko Haram has made its breakthrough in the northwest of the country in recent years.
Dan Karami, the second leader of the bandits, is said to have close links with religious authorities, for whom he even provided security.
Finally, Kachallah Turji is suspected of complicity with certain politicians in ballot stuffing during the elections.
A way for him and Karami to ensure their impunity, according to analysts.
Driven by the crisis
The motivation of these bandits: money.
The economic situation has a lot to do with it.
“
The Nigerian economy is going through a serious crisis,
” says Effiong.
"
The unemployment rate is reaching a significant threshold, especially in the north and that is why a lot of people take the path of crime
."
It is the populations who are paying the price.
"
In my state of Kaduna, even with a strong military presence, the bandits still manage to attack,
" said Shehu Sani.
“
Out of 23 local governments, only two are secure.
Children can no longer go to school, herders cannot go to their land to cultivate it if they do not pay ransom.
The authorities must act
.
"
Newsletter
Receive all international news directly in your mailbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
google-play-badge_FR
Nigeria
our selection
Muhammadu Buhari