Gunmen who attacked a Kaduna-bound train 10 days ago have threatened to kill the captives if the government does not quickly accede to their demands.
The gunmen issued the threat in a video they released stating the reason they freed the managing director of the Bank of Agriculture, Alwan Hassan, who they abducted alongside an unknown number of people during their attack on the Kaduna-bound train.
Nine people died from the attack and several others were injured. The gunmen had used explosives to blow up the train track forcing the train to stop before shooting indiscriminately at the passengers on the train.
The gunmen said they released Mr Hassan because of his age and in the spirit of Ramadan fasting. However, Premium Times was told by a relative of Mr Hassan that a ransom was paid to secure his release. He, however, did not reveal the amount that was paid.
“We are the people who abducted some people on a train some days back and you can see them. This one here (pointing at Mr Hassan) has been begging us to release him and considering his age and also because of the Ramadan fast, we decided to release him to his relatives,” said one of the gun-toting masked gunmen.
A second gunman who spoke then threatened they will kill all the captives if the government does not promptly meet their demands. He, however, did not state what the demands are. But he stated that the government knew what they wanted.
“You (government) should know that this is just the beginning of what we’re going to do….. Killing them is not a big deal to us. You know what we want and it’s not money. If it’s money, we’ll not be doing this. So, it’s left to you to hasten and do what we need from you if not, we’ll do what we want to do to them. This is our message,” he said.
When asked to speak, the now free Mr Hassan said the government should hasten and meet the demands of the gunmen.
“Peace be upon you all. I want you to know that the bandits have sympathised with me considering my age but I also want you to know that I’ve left a lot of people behind (bandits’ camp) and they need urgent help for them to leave this place. I hope that government should reach out to the leaders of these people so that they can discuss and have the captives released in time,” Mr Hassan said.
The Nigerian railway Corporation subsequently suspended the operation of the Abuja- Kaduna rail.
It announced that repair work on the blown-up track and the damaged coaches of the train has commenced, and that operation will resume immediately after the repair work is completed.
Kaduna State and many parts of Nigeria’s Northern region have been plagued by violence perpetrated by gunmen locally referred to as bandits.
These gunmen, since 2018, have attacked mainly rural communities in the region killing thousands and abducting thousands of others. They have also forced communities to pay protection taxes.
The governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, hours after the attack called on the Nigerian military to bomb the camps of the bandits saying they knew where they are.
Remaining passengers
According to the manifest released by the Nigerian Railway Corporation, NRC, there were 362 passengers on board the train.
The corporation and Kaduna State said nine passengers were killed while 26 were injured. Those injured were rescued by the soldiers and taken to the 44 Nigerian Army Reference Hospital in Kaduna.
The agency said it has confirmed the safety of 14 more passengers on board the train, bringing the total number of safe passengers to 186.
Of the remaining 176 passengers, eight have been confirmed dead, while the families of 22 passengers have formally declared them missing. This indicates that a total of 168 passengers have yet to be accounted for including the 22 declared missing by their families.
It is not yet clear if all the 168 were kidnapped by the attackers or have just not been accounted for one week after the incident.
”The statement is aimed at updating Nigerians on the ongoing development regarding the clearing of the incident site (recovery of the rolling stock, repairs of the track) and status of Passengers that were on board the AK9 train of Monday, March 28,” the NRC’s Managing Director, Fidet Okhiria, said in a statement issued on Sunday.
”Of the 362 validated passengers on board the attacked AK9 train service on March 28, 186 persons on the manifest are confirmed to be safe and at their various homes (additional 14 persons confirmed safe today),” Mr Okhiria said.
With the eventual release of Mr Hassan, the unaccounted for passengers are now 167. But they could be more as it is believed there was more passengers on the train than the number reflected in the manifest.
Who are they?
Experts on banditry and Boko Haram insurgency have continued to express divergent views about the identity of the attackers, especially with the emergency of the video clip during the release of Mr Hassan.
Many of the experts on banditry said the perpetrators are bandits but with possible cooperation of either Boko Haram insurgents or Ansari elements that are known to be in Niger state.
Yusuf Anka, a security expert argued that the attack was carried out by bandits operating in the northwest.
“What played out in Kankara is playing out in the Kaduna train attack there is no point in the continuous underestimation of #Fulani bandits by associating every major crime to Boko Haram although there are elements of BH in the recent attack the attack is dominated by the northwest bandits.
“Those from the rural parts of Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara including Katsina and Niger states would understand the monopoly, the arms, the violence and the daring tendencies the bandits have accumulated make them a match to Boko Haram,” he said.
But he didn’t rule out the involvement of some Boko Haram members.
“Although there are known elements of Boko Haram in the attack those conversant with the area know that no group can match an army of armed men in the area in isolation from Fulani bandits.
“Key point is, the Nigerian Government and the Nigerian population must not continue to doubt and even underestimate the power these bandits wield in their areas of control while mistaking it for Boko Haram as the groups continue to grow and advance,” he said.
Bulama Bukarti, another security analyst, who has written extensively on Boko Haram, said the Kaduna train attack has the imprint of Boko Haram terrorists.
After watching the video clip, Mr Bukarti said he believes the attack was carried out by Boko Haram insurgents.
“Early evidence suggests that Abuja – Kaduna train attackers are Boko Haram. In this video, they released the MD of the Bank of Agriculture because “he’s old and it’s Ramadan”. They said the government should work to free the remaining victims quickly or they would “turn their abode into an abattoir”.
Mr Bukarti also noted that the language and posture of the bandits (in the video clip releasing the BoA MD) were not of bandits in the northwest.
“They are likely members of the Ansaru faction of Boko Haram and demand is likely the release of their leaders who have been a detention for long,” he said.
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