DHQ CONFIRMS NEW TERRORIST GROUP, “LIKARAWAS”

The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) has flagged an emerging terrorist threat in Nigeria’s northwest, a new faction named “Lukarawas.” 

Tied to ISIS’s Sahelian network, Lukarawas has swiftly exploited the border instability created by Niger’s recent coup, using this vacuum to infiltrate remote areas of Sokoto and Kebbi from Niger and Mali.

According to Maj.-Gen. Edward Buba, Director of Defence Media Operations, Lukarawas has penetrated these areas with a specific strategy: blending in as protectors, only to later impose their extremist ideology and financial demands on locals. “They started with goodwill gestures but soon began levying taxes on the people,” Buba disclosed, highlighting how the group manipulated initial acceptance by communities.

DHQ traces the group’s origins to the Sahel region, where joint Nigeria-Niger border operations once kept them in check.

 However, the coup in Niger fractured these efforts, providing Lukarawas with an opportunity to make inroads through challenging terrain and settle in isolated communities. Major-Gen. Buba expressed frustration with residents, who only alerted authorities after the extremists began imposing strict Islamic practices and taxing the populace.

The military is now intensifying intelligence and surveillance operations to locate and dismantle the Lukarawas presence. “We know exactly where they are,” Buba confirmed while emphasizing that community vigilance is essential to containing this threat. Without rapid civilian cooperation to identify unusual movements, the risk of another entrenched insurgency rises.

 For now, the mission is clear: track down and uproot Lukarawas before they gain a foothold in Nigeria.