No fewer than 80 worshippers who fled abduction during a bandit attack on Kurmin Wali in Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State have returned home after spending nearly two weeks in neighbouring villages.
The Village Head, Ishaku Dan’azumi, confirmed the return in a telephone interview with newsmen on Sunday.
Dan’azumi said that although initial reports suggested that 177 worshippers had been abducted during the attack, 80 were later confirmed to have escaped and taken refuge in nearby communities.
“We have observed that some people are trying to politicise our situation even as families are going through serious trauma.
“We are appealing to the government and the military to expedite action to secure the safe return of the remaining 86 people still in the bandits’ camp,” Dan’azumi added.
A military source, who spoke anonymously to Punch due to protocol, linked the return of the displaced worshippers to intensified military operations targeting bandit hideouts in Kajuru and its surrounding forest corridors.
While details remain unclear on how the 80 managed to escape, community sources said the increasing military presence has emboldened some villagers to cautiously return to their homes.
The fragile calm in Kajuru was shattered again last Tuesday when bandits attacked Maikori community in Maro Ward, k!lling three residents.
A local source who spoke on conditions of anonymity for security reasons identified the victims as Hassan Agola, Lawal Samson, and Baba Apolo.
Residents said the Maikori incident has heightened tension across the area, with renewed calls for stronger and more permanent security deployment.
Kurmin Wali was attacked on a Sunday night during a worship service, with armed men storming the church and abducting several worshippers, while others fled for safety.
Families of those still in captivity say they remain anxious but hopeful, following reports of increased military patrols and offensive sweeps across troubled communities.
“We just want our people back. The trauma is becoming unbearable,” a community elder told PUNCH Online.
As of Sunday, 86 residents remain unaccounted for, with locals urging urgent government intervention to bring the ordeal to an end.
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