Thousands of Residents Flee Nasarawa Amid Persistent Bandit Attacks
Thousands of residents in parts of Nasarawa State have been forced to flee their homes on foot following a renewed wave of armed bandit attacks, leaving entire communities deserted and residents stranded without shelter.
Eyewitness accounts and footage obtained on Friday showed long columns of displaced villagers, mostly women, children, and the elderly, trekking along a major rural route in search of safety, as panic spread across affected areas.
Local sources disputed official figures of those displaced, insisting the scale of the humanitarian crisis is far worse than being reported.
“There are more than 3,000 people that have been sacked, but that number is not accurate. These people are more than 6,000 or 7,000,” one witness said in the footage, pointing to the continuous stream of fleeing residents.
The witness, who identified the location as communities around the Green River axis in Nasarawa, described the situation as chaotic and deeply distressing.
“We have been driving for several minutes and people are still coming out. They are leaving everything behind. Many of them don’t even know where they are heading,” he added.
The footage captured scenes of displaced families carrying babies, bags, and whatever belongings they could salvage, with no visible presence of security operatives along the route.
The attacks have not only triggered mass displacement but also exposed the vulnerability of rural communities to repeated incursions by armed groups.
“Most of these people don’t have anywhere to sleep. They have no shelter. This is very, very bad,” the witness lamented, adding that many who remained in their villages might still be unaware of the scale of the unfolding crisis.
Residents blamed the persistent insecurity on government failure, accusing political leaders of neglecting the plight of ordinary Nigerians while focusing on electoral calculations.
“The common people are the ones suffering, the poor masses. Meanwhile, politicians are concerned about elections. Their families are safe, but look at what is happening to these people,” another voice in the video said.
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