Insecurity: Panic as bandits escalate attacks, switch from rifles to rocket launchers

Nigeria's decade-long security crisis has intensified with bandits equipping themselves with increasingly advanced weaponry, including rocket launchers. On October 2, the Sokoto State Police Command recovered at least two rocket launchers and other dangerous weapons from armed bandits who had attacked Tsabre Village in Isa Local Government Area.

This development has heightened concerns nationwide, as the assailants continue to inflict harm, particularly in the North-West and North-Central regions, resulting in numerous deaths and abductions for ransom.

For years, bandits have primarily relied on assault rifles and other firearms in their attacks, which include targeting villages, places of worship, ambushing security forces, kidnapping residents, and demanding ransom payments from victims' families. However, the emergence of more powerful weapons, like rocket launchers, has raised doubts about the sources of these arms, their supply networks, and the potential impact on military operations against them.

Various theories surround the acquisition of these weapons. Some allege that helicopters transport arms to forested areas, especially in the North-West, where bandits continue to terrorize locals. Despite former President Muhammadu Buhari's declaration of a no-fly zone over Zamfara State in 2021 to prevent the movement of arms and other supplies to bandits, disturbing videos surfaced in 2025 showing helicopters landing in remote forests, sparking concerns about weapons and supply routes.

Security experts emphasize that smuggling weapons into Nigeria remains a significant challenge due to the country's extensive and porous borders, particularly those shared with Niger Republic. Powerful individuals involved in illegal gold mining have reportedly sponsored insecurity in northern Nigeria, allegedly to exploit the region's mineral resources.

Some bandit leaders have even implicated government officials in facilitating the acquisition of weapons. There are also allegations that military officers and commanders sell arms and ammunition to the assailants.

In October 2025, Shehu Ali Kachalla, a suspected arms dealer from Niger, admitted to smuggling over 450 rifles and 8,000 rounds of ammunition from Niger into Nigeria and selling them to bandit groups in Zamfara, Kaduna, and Niger states. He claimed that military personnel provided armed escorts and protection during these deliveries, which involved convoys crossing porous border zones.

The payments from ransom money, estimated to be around N7.78 billion between July 2025 and June 2026, have financially empowered bandits to acquire even more advanced weaponry.