Agwara, a border town in Niger State, was on Tuesday plunged into chaos and fear as heavily armed terrorists overran the community, burning down the Police Divisional Headquarters and a church, while residents fled for their lives.
Eyewitnesses said the attackers stormed Agwara in large numbers, operating freely for hours without resistance, raising fresh concerns over the worsening security situation in the state and the country at large. The gunmen reportedly arrived on motorcycles and in vehicles, firing sporadically to scare residents before setting key public and religious buildings ablaze.
The Police Divisional Headquarters in the town was completely razed, along with a church, leaving both structures in ruins. Residents said the attack appeared coordinated and deliberate, aimed at dismantling the last symbols of state authority in the area.
“We were abandoned. There was no police, no soldiers, nobody to protect us,” a resident who fled to a neighbouring community told reporters. “They burned the police station, burned the church, and moved around as if there was no government.”
Local sources said many residents escaped into nearby bushes and communities, while others remain unaccounted for as of the time of filing this report. The exact number of casualties is still unclear, but fear and displacement have spread rapidly across Agwara and surrounding villages.
Agwara Local Government Area shares borders with parts of Kebbi State and the Republic of Benin, a corridor that has increasingly become vulnerable to banditry and terrorist infiltration. Residents have repeatedly raised alarms over the absence of security presence and the slow response to distress calls, warnings that appear to have gone unheeded.
This latest attack adds to a growing list of violent assaults across Niger State, where communities have faced repeated raids, kidnappings, and killings by armed groups, despite assurances by authorities that the situation is under control.
As of press time, there was no official statement from the Niger State Government or security agencies on the Agwara attack. Residents are calling for urgent military deployment, humanitarian support, and decisive action to prevent the total collapse of security in the area.
The Agwara incident once again underscores Nigeria’s deepening security crisis, as rural communities continue to bear the brunt of terror, with little protection and diminishing hope for relief.
