…Laments Killing of 20 Soldiers
…Says Region Is at War
By Achadu Gabriel, Kaduna
The Northern Elders Forum (NEF) has urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to declare a state of emergency across the 19 northern states due to escalating insecurity, which continues to claim lives and destabilize communities in the region.
The forum expressed deep sorrow over the recent killing of more than 20 Nigerian soldiers in a deadly ambush by heavily armed assailants in Bangi, Mariga Local Government Area of Niger State.
Describing the incident as one of the deadliest attacks on the Nigerian military in recent times, NEF said it caught the soldiers unprepared and highlighted the deteriorating state of security in the North.
In a statement issued by its spokesperson, Professor Abubakar Jiddere, the Forum described the attack as further evidence of the near-total collapse of security structures in the region.
He noted that the brazen and brutal nature of the ambush reflected an alarming intensification of violence and posed a direct threat to Nigeria’s sovereignty.
According to Professor Jiddere, the coordination and planning involved in the attack suggested that these criminal elements are not just random groups but are operating as part of an organized, strategic offensive against the state.
“The North has effectively become a war zone,” he said, “where residents live under constant fear, and organized criminal gangs continue to seize entire communities.”
Recounting the ambush in stark terms, the Forum said: “More than twenty brave soldiers, who swore to defend the nation, were brutally slain by armed militants who executed a meticulously planned and bold assault. This was not an isolated incident but a chilling show of force meant to instill fear and assert dominance.”
The Forum called on federal authorities to treat the situation as a national emergency, requiring immediate and comprehensive military intervention to apprehend the perpetrators and restore order.
NEF also advocated for a complete overhaul of the country’s security architecture, stating that the current system has failed to protect both civilians and security personnel from increasingly sophisticated threats.
The Forum urged President Tinubu to demonstrate decisive leadership by prioritizing the safety of Nigerians, particularly in the North, where citizens continue to suffer violence, mass abductions, and frequent massacres.
“This is not just an attack—it is a declaration of war against the Nigerian state, and the state is losing,” Jiddere declared.
However, the NEF was silent in this particular statement on the recent massacre in Benue State, where over 200 people, including women and children, were reportedly killed by insurgents.
