Death Toll Rises to 17 in Kaduna Gold Clash Between Bandits and Miners

Seventeen people have been confirmed dead following a violent clash between bandits and illegal gold miners in Kaduna State’s Birnin Gwari district.

The conflict began at a mining site after a notorious bandit leader allegedly extorted gold from miners at gunpoint. Enraged by the act, the miners reportedly mobilized and killed the kingpin, triggering a deadly reprisal from his gang members.

The attackers stormed the mining site, opening fire and killing at least seven miners on the spot. Hours later, they raided nearby Layin Danauta village, leaving nine residents dead, 13 injured, and several others kidnapped. Homes and properties were also destroyed in the assault.

Birnin Gwari, a mineral-rich farming community, had been enjoying relative calm since the state government brokered a peace deal between local residents and bandit groups in late 2024. However, residents now fear that the renewed violence could shatter the fragile truce.

According to locals, tension has returned to the area as people flee for safety. One resident said the attack had reignited fears of a full-blown crisis after nearly a year of peace.

Bandits, Jihadists, and Illegal Mining

Once driven largely by cattle theft and ransom kidnappings, bandit groups in northwestern Nigeria have increasingly turned to illegal mining for revenue, especially as previous peace accords limited their access to levies and abductions.

Security sources say that Birnin Gwari has become a hub for both bandit gangs and Ansaru jihadists, who forged an alliance in 2021 to control the region’s lucrative mineral deposits under a strict version of Sharia law.

Also read: Bandits Kidnap Electoral Commissioner and Others In Niger

Reports warn that the killings could lead to further retaliation and “degenerate” into a new wave of violence, threatening to undo months of fragile peace in one of Kaduna’s most volatile districts.