Nigeria turns to civilian guards to fight Boko Haram terrorists

ABUJA, Nigeria (AA) - Nigeria has turned to civilian volunteers to fight Boko Haram terrorists and bandits amid growing insecurity, according to an official on Wednesday.

Governor of Northwest Zamfara State, Dauda Lawan, said thousands of youths volunteered to fight terrorists.

A total of 4,200 youths were recruited for the newly established Community Protection Guards (CPG) -- the state-backed civil force against terrorists and bandits.

"The guards comprise youth volunteers from all localities and they are to support the security agencies confronting terrorists, bandits and criminal elements," the governor announced at the launch in Zamfara State capital in Gusau.

He said the surge in insecurity promoted the introduction of civilian participation in the counter-terrorism and banditry operation.

The government will handle training, equipment and wages, he said.

While justifying the use of civilian guards to fight terrorists, former Nigerian military intelligence chief and ex-National Security Adviser, Gen. Aliyu Mohammed Gusau said the country's landscape was very vast for a single force to secure.

He said civilian participation was required to confront the security problem.

Security threats, including terror and bandit attacks and kidnapping for ransom, have risen in the northwest region in the last two years.

In early January, at least six people were killed in a bandit attack on a community in Zamfara State. The attack came barely five months after dozens of residents were killed by terrorists.

More than 10, 000 civilians and security personnel have been killed or kidnapped in the northwest since 2022, according to media figures.