JUNE 2026

Kawel attacks in Bokkos

Suspected Fulani militias attacked Kawel village in Bokkos LGA in the early hours of 21 June, killing at least 30 people including health workers and security personnel. Overlapping reports of the same event in the Mushere district recorded 25 and 20 additional fatalities as police engaged the attackers in a gun battle. A further 19 fatalities were recorded in a night attack elsewhere in the state on 22 June.

Barkin Ladi and Jos South attacks

Attackers stormed Gwon-Ajang village in Barkin Ladi LGA on 1 June, killing eight residents and injuring over 15 during a two-hour assault, followed by an attack on gatherers at a social event that killed five. On 16 June, gunmen attacked a mining site in Gero Village, Jos South LGA, killing five youths. (Barkin Ladi and Jos South sub-incidents derive from fuller source reporting beyond the supplied top_events and warrant verification.)

Counter-terrorism operations against ISWAP

A joint US-Nigerian operation killed a reported 199-200 ISIS/ISWAP fighters, including a high-ranking member; the 10 June (200) and 29 June (199) entries in the data appear to describe the same raid, which US officials characterised as the largest single enemy neutralisation since 9/11 and which yielded a large haul of electronic intelligence equipment. An AFRICOM-linked airstrike killed 21 ISWAP fighters in Arege, Kukawa LGA on 1 June, and troops of Operation Hadin Kai neutralised over 50 ISWAP militants, including a top commander, on 3 June.

Mandara Mountains rescue

The Nigerian Army rescued 360 women and children abducted from Ngoshe community in Gwoza LGA, recovered from a JAS/Boko Haram stronghold in the Mandara Mountains during a special operation. Six children died of starvation in captivity and two infants died during the rescue due to harsh terrain.

Gummi and Bukkuyum attacks

On 2 June, bandits attacked Gummi/Bukkuyum Federal Constituency, killing 93 people and kidnapping 50 elderly men in one of the month's deadliest single incidents. A further attack on Gummi LGA on 26 June displaced 484 people, including 271 children, with three killed and two injured.

Abductions during peace missions

Bandits abducted 39-50 village elders from Magamin Diddi in Maradun LGA during a reconciliation mission, with leader Jammo releasing some captives while demanding a ransom reportedly of ₦100 million. Separately, terrorists on motorcycles attacked Gora Namaye/Goran Namaye in Maradun LGA, killing 17-19 farmers who had defied threats against planting-season farming.

Southern Kaduna rescue and attacks

Troops rescued 119 kidnapped victims and neutralised several bandits during operations in Southern Kaduna on 11 June. Reporting also records a terrorist attack on the Irigwe community in Kauru LGA on 17 June that killed nine and injured eleven, and further fatal attacks on burial gatherings later in the month. (The Kauru attack derives from fuller source reporting beyond the supplied top_events and warrants verification.)

Birnin Gwari farmland killings

Reporting records bandits invading Kujijiro farmlands in the Kuyello District of Birnin Gwari LGA on 23 June, killing at least nine farmers, and abducting 20 individuals from Layin Danauta village where six corpses were recovered. Bandits also reportedly ambushed and killed eight soldiers in the state on 9 June. (These Birnin Gwari and soldier-ambush details are not present in the supplied top_events and warrant verification.)

Ayegunle-Igun abductions

Coordinated bandit attacks on Ayegunle-Igun/Kabba-Bunu community over 1-4 June kidnapped 25-30 residents, including commercial bus passengers, killing several during predawn raids. Nigerian Army troops rescued 23 abducted passengers on the Ayegunle-Bunu Road, though additional fatalities and injuries were recorded.

Iluke school attack

Assailants attacked Government Secondary School in Iluke Bunu, Kabba-Bunu LGA, on 10 June, killing three including a vice principal, a 70-year-old man and a six-year-old child, and kidnapping students. A further ambush on Isanlu Road killed two and abducted five travellers.

Cult violence across the metropolis

A police crackdown on the Aiye Confraternity in Ajangbadi, Ojo LGA, followed multiple killings of rival cult members, with a suspected leader arrested for four killings. Suspected cultists killed three residents, including a physically challenged child, in Oreta community, Ikorodu, in a reprisal attack, while further cult clashes in Alimosho LGA left at least two dead.

Trafficking rescues and Operation Kósàyè

The Force Criminal Investigation Department rescued 45 human-trafficking victims, and the NSCDC dismantled a syndicate in Badagry, rescuing 24 victims from Nigeria, Benin and Togo, some missing for up to three years. Operation Kósàyè, spanning Lagos and Ogun, killed four kidnappers and dismantled forest hideouts.

Matazu and Malumfashi attacks

Bandits attacked Sayaya community in Matazu LGA, killing seven residents and triggering displacement, while a raid on Ketare town in Malumfashi LGA was repelled by vigilantes and CJTF after a gun battle that left seven defenders dead, including two CJTF members. Worsening insecurity forced the closure of at least 10 churches across multiple LGAs.

Rescues and repelled raids

Police foiled a kidnapping attempt along the Katsina-Kankara highway, rescuing nine victims, and troops of 17 Brigade rescued six kidnap victims in Faskari LGA on 29 June. Troops and vigilantes repelled an attack on Dankado village, though two residents were killed in nearby Badawa.

Tureta LGA attacks

Bandits attacked Dan Gubi/Dangulbi in Tureta LGA in twin attacks on 18 June, killing 37 residents while looting shops, following an attack on 4 June that killed more than 20 and raids on 1-2 June during Eid-el-Kabir that each killed 17, including Sallah visitors. Attackers numbering in the hundreds arrived on motorcycles and fired indiscriminately, forcing residents into nearby forests.

Abductions and rescues in Sabon Birni

Gunmen abducted at least 20 traders, farmers and travellers on the road to Sabon Birni Market on 12 June, while bandits abducted 12 residents and killed four, including a village imam, in Goronyo LGA on 28 June after security personnel failed to respond. Troops rescued 22 victims from an abduction plot in the Sabon Birni-Isa axis on 20 June.

Kidnapping ambushes and dredging attacks

Gunmen attacked a private dredging site in Magbon Etido, Obafemi Owode LGA, on 9 June, killing five including a soldier during a foiled abduction of Chinese expatriates. Five travellers were abducted on the Ijebu Ode-Benin Expressway near Ogbere and marched into Iperu Forest with a ₦70 million ransom demand; all were rescued within 24 hours under Operation Kósàyè, with four kidnappers killed.

Abeokuta killings and fraud

A retired broadcaster and her security guard were murdered at her residence in the Kobape area of Abeokuta on 21 June, with three suspects, including her former guard, confessing to the killing and robbery. Police also arrested a transnational fraud syndicate in Ifo LGA that had orchestrated a fake kidnapping plot to extort a victim's family.

Arewa attack and Lakurawa cells

At least 20 people were killed in a suspected bandit attack on Fesken Rafi community in Arewa LGA on 13 June. Police arrested multiple suspects linked to the Lakurawa and Mamudawa groups over the killing of three Federal Road Safety Corps personnel ambushed along the Tsamiya-Illo Road in Bagudo LGA.

Argungu farmer-herder clashes

Successive clashes between farmers and herders in Gulma town, Argungu LGA, over straying cattle killed eight individuals across mid-to-late June, with four suspects subsequently arrested.

Borgu and Shiroro attacks

Bandits attacked Pissa/Pesa village in Borgu LGA on 13-14 June, killing three residents and burning houses, while an ambush on loggers in Wawa village triggered a reprisal against Fulani houses. Six farmers were killed in Unguwar Wawa, Shiroro LGA, on 1 June.

Operation Fansan Yamma airstrikes

Troops conducted precision airstrikes in the Dogon Dawa axis of Shiroro LGA on 30 June, neutralising several terrorists after intelligence indicated a convergence of over 200 suspected militants on motorcycles, and intercepted bandits mobilising toward Kamuku Forest for reprisal attacks.

MACBAN chairman killing

Gunmen ambushed and killed the Benue State chairman of MACBAN and a companion at Okudu village in Otukpo LGA on 27 June, shortly after he attended a peace meeting convened to address communal tensions in Ayunne Community. An attack on Fulani travellers in Okpokwu LGA also killed one and injured two.

Anti-crime operations

Troops of Operation Whirl Stroke rescued kidnapped victims and killed four suspected criminals in Guma LGA and neighbouring Taraba, while dismantling a drug-trafficking syndicate. Police killed three suspected robbers or bandits during gun battles along the Vaase-Chito Road in Ukum LGA.