Crime
ISSP Establishes Cross-Border Corridor Linking Mali to Lake Chad Axis, Claims Lakurawa Group As its Operational Wing

ISSP Establishes Cross-Border Corridor Linking Mali to Lake Chad Axis, Claims Lakurawa Group As its Operational Wing
By: Zagazola Makama
The Islamic State in the Sahel Province (ISSP) has officially recognized the Lakurawa Group as its clandestine operational wing, formalizing a strategic corridor between its two major factions EIGS (Islamic State in the Greater Sahara) operating in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, and ISWAP (Islamic State West Africa Province) active around Lake Chad.
The announcement, made in the wake of two deadly attacks on May 4 in Niger, marks a significant shift in the regional security landscape. On that day, armed militants attacked Dogonkiria in Dosso region, killing at least 30 security force personnel, and Danga in Tillabéri region, where six volunteer fighters for the defense of the homeland (VDPs) were slain.
Zagazola Makama believes the operational link now established between the Sarma Forest in Nigeria and Anderamboukane in Mali via central Niger will enable increased mobility for fighters, arms trafficking, intelligence sharing, and hostage transfers. This corridor, long suspected by observers, has now been confirmed as a key axis for extremist logistics.
Sources say the emergence of ISSP reflects a new phase in Islamic State operations in the region, marked by greater coordination, territorial fluidity, and strategic exploitation of Niger’s governance and airspace gaps particularly since the withdrawal or downsizing of key international security partners.
Zagazola reports that the central strip of Niger already marked by repeated attacks, pipeline sabotage, and mass civilian casualties is increasingly falling under the shadow of ISSP. Many of these incidents had previously gone unclaimed but are now attributed to the group’s covert campaign to secure this critical transit route.
Zagazola warn that if the current trend continues unchecked, the entire security architecture of West Africa may be destabilized, with spillover effects extending beyond the Sahel to Nigeria.
He called for renewed multilateral cooperation and intelligence-sharing, transcending political divisions and post-coup dynamics.
In recent months, Zagazola had raised alarm over the quiet expansion of Lakurawa, cautioning that the group was a proxy for EIGS. The confirmation by ISSP now validates those concerns, signaling an urgent need for proactive counterterrorism measures and regional solidarity.
ISSP Establishes Cross-Border Corridor Linking Mali to Lake Chad Axis, Claims Lakurawa Group As its Operational Wing
Crime
Suspected terrorists kill 75-year-old farmer in Borno’s Konduga LGA

Suspected terrorists kill 75-year-old farmer in Borno’s Konduga LGA
By: Zagazola Makama
Suspected Boko Haram terrorists have shot and killed a 75-year-old farmer, Bukar Tijjani, while he was working on his farmland in Konduga Local Government Area of Borno State.
Zagazola learnt that the incident occurred at about 12:00 p.m. on Wednesday, according to relative of the deceased.
The victim was ambushed and shot in the back by the assailants while tending to his farm.
The troops of Operation HADIN Kai were immediately alerted and mobilised to the scene
The team documented the scene and evacuated the victim to the General Hospital in Konduga. He was subsequently referred to the State Specialists Hospital in Maiduguri, where he was confirmed dead on arrival by medical personnel.
His body has since been released to his family for burial in accordance with Islamic rites.
Suspected terrorists kill 75-year-old farmer in Borno’s Konduga LGA
Crime
NSCDC and Immigration officers kidnap cousin, bag ₦10m ransom in Enugu

NSCDC and Immigration officers kidnap cousin, bag ₦10m ransom in Enugu
By: Zagazola Makama
In what could be dubbed “family reunion with a twist,” two sisters, both proudly serving as Nigeria’s security personnel, decided that blood isn’t just thicker than water, it’s worth ₦10 million in cold, hard ransom.
Juliet Chukwu, 39, an officer with the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) stationed in Awgu Division, and her older sister, Nancy Chukwu, 40, a member of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) in Enugu Command, apparently got tired of living on salaries.
So, they allegedly put their training to creative use by orchestrating the kidnapping of their own cousin.
Their unfortunate target? One Engr. Dennis Igwe Chibueze, 43, fondly known as “Be Good.” Clearly, being good wasn’t good enough to keep him out of his cousins’ sinister entrepreneurial plans.
Dennis, who hails from Amaeze Ishiagu in Ivo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, but lives quietly in Sunrise Estate, Emene, found himself in an involuntary family retreat complete with ransom negotiations and an ash-coloured Toyota Corolla (2007 model) thrown in for good measure.
When the curtain was pulled back on the operation at Nafelis Hotel, Independence Layout, Enugu, it wasn’t a movie shoot, just Juliet and Nancy having a less-than-luxurious staycation with ₦10 million cash, eight mobile phones, one official NSCDC ID card, and dreams of a better life (or at least better phones).
The police arrested the two sisters and recovered the ₦10 million ransom.
Both suspects reportedly confessed to the crime.
Police say said discreet investigation is ongoing and assured that all those involved in the criminal act would be brought to justice.
NSCDC and Immigration officers kidnap cousin, bag ₦10m ransom in Enugu
Crime
Gunmen kill 15 in fresh attack on Riyom community in Plateau

Gunmen kill 15 in fresh attack on Riyom community in Plateau
By: Zagazola Makama
At least 15 persons killed and four others injured in a deadly attack by suspected armed Fulani militias on Jebbu village in Riyom Local Government Area.
Zagazola Makama gathered from security sources that the attack occurred on July 15 at about 6:45 a.m. when the assailants stormed the community and opened fire on residents.
Joint troops of Operation Safe Heaven promptly responded to the attack in collaboration with other security agencies.
“On arrival, 15 lifeless bodies were recovered, while four other victims with varying degrees of gunshot wounds were evacuated to the General Hospital in Riyom for treatment.
The corpses of the deceased have also been deposited at the same hospital’s mortuary.
Additional troops have been deployed to the area to forestall further attacks and to conduct extensive bush combing operations aimed at tracking and arresting the perpetrators.
Jebbu village had not come under attack or recorded any threat since the beginning of the farmers-herders conflict in Plateau State, making this incident unprecedented.
Gunmen kill 15 in fresh attack on Riyom community in Plateau
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