The new terrorist group called Mahmuda has invaded Duruma Village in Baruten Local Council of Kwara State, killing three people in the process.

   Meanwhile, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt-Gen Olufemi Oluyede, has appealed to the government and people of Benue State to support military efforts in ending the persistent killings and attacks in the state.

   This was as the Minister of Defence, Mohammed Abubakar, linked the recent resurgence of Boko Haram attacks in the North-East, particularly in Borno State, to the group’s renewed efforts to destabilise countries across the Sahel region, including Nigeria, Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger Republic.

   The Guardian reliably learnt that the group, last week, reportedly set a farm settlement in the area on fire.

   However, the Army said its troops are pounding the terror group.

    Army Spokesman in 2 Division, Lt-Col Polycarp Okoye, who disclosed this to The Guardian, dispelled reports from a new media platform that the group is new.

   The recent attack on the village happened in the early hours of yesterday. 

   However, a highly-placed source said the terrorist group took advantage of the local hunters in Ilorin on training for the National Forest Guard, recently approved by the Presidency to provide security for communities.

   The Mahmuda group, in a fresh attack on Duruma village in Baruten Local Council, yesterday, slaughtered three villagers who have since been buried.

   The COAS, in April, visited the areas after which soldiers were deployed to the thick forests to flush out the terrorists, during which 12 of them were arrested.

   Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, who also visited the troubled communities, gave 25 motorcycles to the local hunters as logistics to complement the soldiers.

   It was gathered from the locals that members of the terrorist group never left the areas, butwere incapacitated by the presence of the soldiers and local hunters.

   A source (name withheld) stated: “Our local hunters are in Ilorin for the training of the National Forest Guard on how they can effectively use weapons to fight the terrorists.

   “Eventually, the Mahmuda people felt their absence because they were no longer in the areas they used to be, so they struck those areas and killed three villagers. Though the soldiers eventually came to the areas, firing gunshots in the air after they had fled. A week ago, they also set fire to a farm settlement.”

   The COAS, during a visit to Governor Hyacinth Alia at the Benue State Government House in Makurdi, emphasised the need for credible and timely intelligence from locals to aid military operations.

   “The military cannot do it alone. We need the cooperation of the people to stop these senseless killings and destruction,” the Army chief stated, describing the attacks by armed herders and militia groups as barbaric.

   He reassured the governor of the army’s commitment to restoring peace and stability in the state, stating the military’s determination to end the violence in the shortest possible time.

   Alia thanked the COAS for visiting the state and taking the situation seriously. He expressed confidence that the visit would mark a turning point in security efforts across Benue.

   Speaking to journalists in Kaduna, yesterday, at the end of his two-day working visit to military institutions in the state, the minister assured Nigerians that the Federal Government was actively tackling the threat.  

    He noted that the Nigerian Armed Forces gained momentum in the last two weeks and neutralised a significant number of insurgents.

   Addressing the continued attacks in parts of the country despite gains made against banditry in the North-West, he explained that each security challenge varies in nature.