KAURA, Kaduna State — Nigerian Army troops operating under Joint Task Force Operation Enduring Peace (JTF OPEP) say they have neutralised seven suspected criminals in two separate gun battles in southern Kaduna, rescuing a kidnapped girl and recovering a locally fabricated rifle, ammunition and motorcycles.
In a statement issued Thursday by the task force’s acting media information officer, Captain Joshua Atu John, the Army said the operations were carried out under Operation Peace Shield on Tuesday, January 13, 2026 and Wednesday, January 14, 2026, within Kaura Local Government Area.
According to the statement, troops of Sector 7 received intelligence that a girl (name withheld) had been kidnapped in Kajim village. The Army said troops mobilised to pursue the suspects and made contact, leading to an exchange of fire in which three suspects were killed. The suspects were identified by the task force as Yusuf Musa, Auwal Adamu and Kamal Abdul. The victim was rescued, debriefed and reunited with her family, the statement said.
The following day, the Army said Sector 7 troops raided what it described as an armed robbery hideout on the outskirts of Kaura town. It said troops again came under fire and, in what it called a “meeting engagement,” four additional suspects were neutralised. The individuals were identified by the task force as Abubakar Ibrahim (35), Ibrahim Isa (37), Suleiman Auwal (25) and Suleiman Tahiru.
Items recovered from the scene included one locally fabricated rifle, five rounds of 7.62mm (special) ammunition and two motorcycles, according to the statement. Preliminary investigations, the Army added, suggested the suspects were part of a syndicate involved in kidnapping, armed robbery and related crimes along the Ganawuri–Manchok corridor, a route that has featured in repeated security operations in the area.
Operation Enduring Peace was rebranded and launched in 2025 as a broader, intelligence-driven joint task force mandate aimed at strengthening security and restoring stability across its area of responsibility, the military has said.
Captain John said the task force would continue to “sustain pressure” on criminal networks and maintain operations to protect residents across the joint operations area.
