Tension briefly gripped parts of Share community, the headquarters of Ifelodun Local Government Area of Kwara State, on Sunday evening following a gunfire exchange between suspected bandits and security operatives.
Eyewitnesses reported that the armed men engaged security personnel, including the , working alongside forest guards and other local security outfits. The coordinated forces successfully repelled the attackers.
Local sources confirmed that the gunfire lasted about one hour, around 8:30 p.m., very close to the headquarters of the Ifelodun Local Government Secretariat. Authorities said the prompt response of security operatives thwarted the assailants’ attack. No abductions or casualties were reported.
This incident followed an earlier attack in Kakafu community, a remote settlement in Patigi Local Government Area, where suspected bandits reportedly kidnapped four persons. Residents described the assailants as firing sporadically into the air to create panic before whisking their victims to an unknown location.
A forest guard, speaking anonymously, said residents remain traumatised and fearful of further attacks. Kwara State has experienced a string of violent attacks, including a February 3 incident in Kaiama where gunmen killed 170 people in two villages, raising concerns about terrorists moving south along the Niger-Kwara axis toward the Kainji forest.
The -led administration stated it is working with Washington to improve security and denies any systematic persecution of Christians. Tinubu emphasized that a new military unit would help protect remote communities and prevent further attacks.