President Bola Tinubu has ordered the immediate deployment of a specialised military task force to Kwara State following a brutal terrorist attack that left at least 162 people dead in the remote communities of Woro and Nuku.
The massacre, which occurred on the evening of Tuesday, February 3, 2026, targeted residents during a religious gathering. Witnesses and local officials reported that heavily armed militants, identified as members of the Lakurawa group, surrounded the villages in the Kaiama Local Government Area before opening fire on the congregation.
Mohammed Omar Bio, a member of the House of Representatives for the area, confirmed the staggering death toll on Wednesday. He told reporters that the attackers, who are affiliated with the Islamic State, sought to impose extremist doctrines on the villagers. "The gunmen had come to preach to residents, urging them to ignore the Nigerian Constitution," Bio said. When the community members resisted, the militants began an indiscriminate execution of the residents.
In response to the carnage, President Tinubu authorised the launch of "Operation Shield Savannah". This new security initiative mandates the Nigerian Armed Forces to conduct a comprehensive "flush-out" operation across the forested border regions between Kwara and Niger states. The Presidency stated that the objective is to dismantle the logistics networks of the Lakurawa group, which has increasingly migrated from the Sahel region into Nigeria’s north-central belt.
Kwara State Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq visited the bereaved communities on Wednesday evening, describing the killings as a "cowardly expression of frustration" by terrorist cells.
He argued that the insurgents were reacting to recent military successes that had "neutralised" approximately 150 bandits in the weeks leading up to the attack. "The message is very clear: more than ever before, the terrorists now have the option of immediately leaving our state or paying a heavy price," Abdulrazaq said during a sympathy visit to the Emir of Kaiama.
The Lakurawa group—an extremist faction that recently re-emerged in northwestern Nigeria—reportedly utilised the porous borders near Benin and Niger to launch the raid. Survivors told news agencies that the attackers bound the hands of several victims before shooting them and subsequently set fire to the king’s palace and numerous homes.
Amnesty International has criticised the government's response, claiming that villagers had received warning letters from the militants months in advance, according to a report by The Associated Press. The rights group called the security lapses "unacceptable" and urged for more than just a temporary military presence.
As of Thursday morning, troops from the 22 Armoured Brigade and newly trained forest guards have taken over the affected communities. Aerial surveillance has also been deployed to track the insurgents, who are believed to have retreated into the dense thickets of the Borgu National Park.