Nigerian military forces killed more than 300 armed bandits this week during a two-day offensive in Gummi district, Zamfara state, targeting gangs responsible for mass kidnappings and cattle rustling across the country's northwest.
Zamfara information commissioner Mahmud Muhammad Dantawasa confirmed the death toll in an official statement. Soldiers and local vigilante groups engaged roughly 1,000 gunmen who were relocating their base along with hundreds of stolen livestock, according to reports from the area. A Gummi resident said the fighting broke out as the armed convoy moved through the district. State authorities have described the operation as a significant advance in combating the region's persistent violence.
The offensive follows a separate crisis in May 2026, when Boko Haram fighters abducted 46 students and staff from three schools in Oyo state before authorities later secured the release of dozens of hostages.