At least 39 elderly residents of a village in north-western Nigeria remain in captivity after a self-organised peace meeting with a notorious bandit leader backfired, local officials say.
The victims were part of a 50-member delegation from Magamin Diddi village in Zamfara State who travelled to a forest hideout to negotiate with a gang leader known as Jammo.
The local government chairman, Bello Dosara, told reporters that the villagers had acted without the authorization of the state government, which maintains a strict policy against negotiating with armed criminal groups.
The bandit leader reportedly betrayed the delegation upon their arrival in the Muntsira Forest, taking them hostage before releasing 11 members to convey his demands back to the community.
Local councillor Bello Husseini said the gang leader is demanding a ransom of 24 million naira ($16,000) and the return of three assault rifles previously seized by security forces.
The incident follows months of friction in the area. The local gang had previously blocked villagers from accessing local markets, forcing local authorities to provide weekly armed escorts for traders.
Tensions escalated further during Ramadan following deadly clashes between the bandits and a state-backed vigilante group, known locally as the Askarawa.
Local officials have now called on the military and the Ministry of Defence to launch a sustained offensive in the forest, which is considered a major stronghold for criminal networks straddling several local government areas in Zamfara.
North-western Nigeria has been plagued for years by heavily armed criminal gangs—referred to locally as bandits—who carry out mass abductions for ransom, raid villages, and kill those who resist.
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