President Bola Tinubu has ordered the immediate deployment of a military battalion to Kaiama Local Government Area in Kwara State following a deadly terrorist attack that claimed at least 75 lives.
The move, dubbed Operation Savannah Shield, aims to restore security in the region amid escalating violence attributed to extremist groups.
The assault occurred late Tuesday in the Woro and Nuku communities of Kaiama LGA, where armed extremists reportedly executed villagers.
In response, Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, announced the federal intervention via a post on his X handle on Wednesday night.
“Help is on the way for the beleaguered people of Kaiama and others as President Tinubu orders the deployment of a military battalion, the appointment of a commander and the start of Operation Savannah Shield,” Onanuga stated.
The operation is intended to secure the area and prevent further incursions, building on existing security measures.
Meanwhile, Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, who visited the area on Wednesday night, accompanied by service chiefs, described the massacre as targeting “local Muslims who refused to surrender to extremists preaching a strange doctrine.”
Speaking at the palace of the Emir of Kaiama, he condemned the killings as a cowardly expression of frustration by terrorist cells in response to ongoing counterterrorism efforts.
AbdulRazaq suggested that the victims’ refusal to yield to the extremists’ teachings triggered the violence.
He said, “We commiserate with you over the death of 75 of your subjects. May Allah grant them aljana Firdaus.
“And from the information I’ve been getting, this village refuses to succumb to a perverted form of Islamic doctrine.
“They (terrorists) are lying under their immolation, abiding by their Islamic faith. And these villagers, they don’t want any alteration.
“And because they refuse to change doctrine in their faith, they were attacked and massacred.
“It’s different from what we used to see, where subjects are kidnapped or ransacked. But this was just a pure massacre. And it’s something truly condemned.”
This incident marks one of the deadliest attacks in Kwara State this year.
It follows cases of bandit attacks and kidnappings in the state in late 2025, fueling concerns over the southward spread of violence from Nigeria’s northwest, where banditry and extremism have long plagued communities.
