Key figures
Who is fighting
Nigerian state forces and vigilantes
- Nigerian Army and Air Force
- Nigeria Police Force
- State-backed vigilantes and Community Protection Guards
- United States (airstrikes in Sokoto, December 2025 and 2026)
- United States
Bandit gangs of the north-west
- Bello Turji's group
- Dogo Gide's group
- Kachalla Chimmo (Sububu forest)
- Numerous Fulani-led gangs in Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna, Sokoto, Kebbi and Niger states
Jihadist groups operating in the north-west and north-central
- Lakurawa (Islamic State Sahel-aligned, Sokoto/Kebbi)
- Islamic State Sahel Province
- JNIM 'Nigerian brigade'
- Boko Haram cell of Abubakar 'Sadiku' Saidu (Kwara/Niger states)
- Ansaru
- Islamic State
- Al-Qaeda (JNIM)
Communal militias in the Middle Belt
- Armed herder groups
- Farming-community vigilantes (Plateau, Benue, Kaduna, Taraba)
Force sizes are estimates of personnel or fighters, usually from IISS, government statements or specialist reporting; irregular forces are especially hard to count. "(reported)" marks external support that the backer disputes or has not confirmed.
Background
Cattle rustling and reprisals between Hausa farming communities and Fulani herders in Zamfara escalated after 2011 into organised banditry by gangs with thousands of fighters, more than 30,000 bandits and 100 camps were estimated in Zamfara alone in 2021. Mass school kidnappings since 2020, highway abductions and 'taxation' of villages have made the north-west Nigeria's deadliest region; SBM Intelligence counted 2,938 people kidnapped there between July 2024 and June 2025. Lakurawa, a Sahel-rooted Islamic State-aligned group, has entrenched itself in Sokoto and Kebbi since 2023 and the Islamic State Sahel Province claimed its first Nigerian attacks in 2026.
In north-central Nigeria, competition over land between Christian farming communities and Fulani herders, aggravated by climate stress and weak policing, produces recurrent massacres: Bokkos in Plateau (52 killed, April 2025), Yelewata in Benue (59-100+, June 2025), Bokkos again (20 killed, 9 April 2026) and a Palm Sunday attack in Jos (33 killed). The deadliest single attack of 2026 was in Kwara State, where a Boko Haram cell led by 'Sadiku' killed over 200 people in Nuku and Woro on 3-4 February; 163 abductees were rescued in August.
The military response combines airstrikes, which killed at least 85 civilians in Zamfara and Niger State on 10 May 2026, with large ground operations (300 bandits reported killed in Gummi, Zamfara, in July 2026) and amnesty deals. Lakurawa attacks in Kebbi (20 killed in June; soldiers and a Chinese national killed in October) and bandit levies on communities in Zamfara continued into October 2026.
Recent developments
- 12 October 2026Suspected Lakurawa fighters burn villages in Kebbi; bandits impose a 50 million naira levy on Dansadau communities in Zamfara after attacking three villages. source ↗
- 8 October 2026Lakurawa attack in Maiyama LGA, Kebbi, kills two soldiers and a Chinese national; troops repel a separate assault by militants on over 100 motorcycles. source ↗
- 20 September 2026Five herders killed around Kassa, Barkin Ladi, Plateau, as tit-for-tat attacks continue. source ↗
- 22 August 2026Lakurawa militants kill and abduct villagers in Dikera and Binzi, Niger State, during Friday prayers. source ↗
- 27 July 2026At least 30 killed in an attack on Naridon village, Kauru, Kaduna. source ↗
- 22 July 2026Bandits kill at least 24 in a farming community in Talata Mafara, Zamfara. source ↗
- 21 June 2026At least 20 killed in an attack on Kawel, Bokkos, Plateau. source ↗
- 15 June 2026Suspected Lakurawa insurgents kill at least 20 in Arewa LGA, Kebbi. source ↗
Timeline
- 1 June 2011Cattle-rustling conflicts in Zamfara escalate into organised banditry.
- 11 December 2020Kankara: more than 300 schoolboys kidnapped in Katsina, the first of many mass school abductions.
- 1 October 2023Lakurawa establishes bases in Sokoto and Kebbi after the Niger coup disrupts border security.
- 7 April 2025Reprisal attacks in Bokkos, Plateau, kill at least 52 and displace 2,000.
- 14 June 2025Attack on Yelewata, Benue, kills 59 (government) to over 100 (residents).
- 19 August 2025Gunmen kill 32 worshippers at a mosque in Unguwan Mantau, Katsina.
- 25 December 2025US launches airstrikes on Islamic State-linked targets in Sokoto State.
- 4 February 2026Kwara massacre: a Boko Haram cell kills over 200 people in Nuku and Woro, Kaiama; 'Operation Savanna Shield' launched.
- 19 February 2026Gunmen on motorcycles kill at least 50 at Tungan Dutse, Zamfara; 46 killed in Borgu, Niger State, five days earlier.
- 10 May 2026Military airstrikes kill at least 72 civilians in Tumfa, Zamfara, and 13 in Niger State; a reprisal attack kills 30 travellers.
- 8 July 2026Two-day army and vigilante operation in Gummi, Zamfara, reportedly kills more than 300 bandits.
- 6 August 2026Kwara government announces 163 abductees from the February attack rescued; 308 freed in Kwara and Niger states overall.
- 8 October 2026Lakurawa attack on construction workers in Maiyama, Kebbi, kills two soldiers and a Chinese national.
Casualties and displacement in detail
| Measure | Low | High | What the figure covers · source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total killed (cumulative) | 12,000 | – | At least 12,000 killed in the north-west banditry conflict by 2021 (New Lines Magazine); deaths since then, and Middle Belt deaths, are additional and not aggregated. en.wikipedia.org ↗ |
| Combatants killed | – | – | Not published; 2026 incidents include 5 soldiers and a police officer killed in a Zamfara ambush (19 January), ~20 security personnel at Kanam, Plateau (13 March), 10 police at Sakaba, Kebbi (10 August) and 2 soldiers at Maiyama, Kebbi (8 October). en.wikipedia.org ↗ |
| Civilians killed | 200 | – | Kwara massacre alone (3-4 February 2026; Red Cross count 162, later reports over 200). HRW and ACLED document hundreds more civilian deaths in 2026 across Zamfara, Katsina, Niger, Kaduna, Plateau and Benue. en.wikipedia.org ↗ |
| Wounded | – | – | Not recorded. hrw.org ↗ |
| Deaths in the last 12 months | 900 | – | ACLED figure for Sokoto State only (July 2025-June 2026); nationwide documented 2026 incidents listed in intensityNote push the total well above 1,500. acleddata.com ↗ |
| Internally displaced | 247,000 | 450,000 | Compiled estimates for the north-west banditry conflict (undated); the Bauchi attacks of February 2026 alone displaced 12,168, and Plateau attacks in 2025 displaced nearly 2,000. en.wikipedia.org ↗ |
| Refugees abroad | 77,000 | – | At least 77,000 Nigerians displaced into Niger's Maradi region by banditry (compiled figure). en.wikipedia.org ↗ |
Intensity classification: ACLED recorded more than 900 fatalities in Sokoto State alone between July 2025 and June 2026 (June 2026 the deadliest month there since 1997), and the most political-violence incidents ever in Plateau State in April 2026. Documented 2026 attacks elsewhere add well over 1,000 deaths: 200+ in Kwara (3-4 February), 50 in Zamfara (19 February), 46 in Niger State (14 February), 85 civilians in airstrikes plus 30 in a reprisal (10 May), 300 bandits killed in one operation (8 July), 30 in Kaduna (27 July) and dozens in Plateau and Benue..
Countries affected
Frequently asked questions
Who is fighting in the Nigeria: north-west banditry, Lakurawa and Middle Belt farmer–herder violence?
Nigerian state forces and vigilantes (Nigerian Army and Air Force, Nigeria Police Force, State-backed vigilantes and Community Protection Guards, United States (airstrikes in Sokoto, December 2025 and 2026)), supported by United States; against Bandit gangs of the north-west (Bello Turji's group, Dogo Gide's group, Kachalla Chimmo (Sububu forest), Numerous Fulani-led gangs in Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna, Sokoto, Kebbi and Niger states); against Jihadist groups operating in the north-west and north-central (Lakurawa (Islamic State Sahel-aligned, Sokoto/Kebbi), Islamic State Sahel Province, JNIM 'Nigerian brigade', Boko Haram cell of Abubakar 'Sadiku' Saidu (Kwara/Niger states), …), supported by Islamic State, Al-Qaeda (JNIM); against Communal militias in the Middle Belt (Armed herder groups, Farming-community vigilantes (Plateau, Benue, Kaduna, Taraba)).
How many people have been killed?
Estimates range from 12,000+ killed as of 12 October 2026. At least 12,000 killed in the north-west banditry conflict by 2021 (New Lines Magazine); deaths since then, and Middle Belt deaths, are additional and not aggregated. Civilian deaths are put at 200+. Figures come from the sources listed on this page and differ in method; see the caveats above.
Is the Nigeria: north-west banditry, Lakurawa and Middle Belt farmer–herder violence still ongoing in 2026?
Status as of 19 October 2026: Active fighting — Armed 'bandit' gangs based in the forests of Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto, Kebbi, Kaduna and Niger states kill, kidnap for ransom and levy villages, increasingly overlapping with jihadists (the Islamic State-linked Lakurawa, a JNIM 'Nigerian brigade' and a Boko Haram cell that massacred over 200 people in Kwara in February 2026), while farmer-herder violence in Plateau and Benue states claims dozens of lives a month. Nigerian airstrikes and ground operations kill hundreds of bandits but also civilians, and the US began striking Islamic State-linked targets in Sokoto in December 2025.
When did it start?
The current phase began on 1 June 2011, but the underlying conflict dates back to 1999 — 15 years, 4 months ago.
Sources
- ACLED — Africa Overview July 2026 (Sokoto) acleddata.com
- ACLED — Africa Overview May 2026 (Plateau) acleddata.com
- HRW World Report 2026 — Nigeria hrw.org
- Wikipedia — 2026 Kwara State attacks en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia — Nigerian bandit conflict en.wikipedia.org
- Africanews — Military strikes and gang massacres kill around 100 civilians (May 2026) africanews.com
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Glostats. (2026). Nigeria: north-west banditry, Lakurawa and Middle Belt farmer–herder violence (2026). Retrieved October 20, 2026, from https://glostats.com/conflicts/nigeria-northwest-banditry-middle-belt-violence/<a href="https://glostats.com/conflicts/nigeria-northwest-banditry-middle-belt-violence/">Nigeria: north-west banditry, Lakurawa and Middle Belt farmer–herder violence (2026)</a> — GlostatsFigures on this page may be quoted, charted or republished as long as the page is credited with a link. Terms · Download the data as CSV · Embed a live counter.
This page summarises publicly available reporting and does not take sides. Casualty and force figures are estimates compiled on 19 October 2026; see each figure's source for its method and date. Page generated 2026-10-20. How this tracker works.