Tinubu Deploys Military Battalion as Kwara Death Toll Hits 170 After Villagers Defied Terrorist Doctrine

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has vowed that Nigeria will “never surrender” to extremism following a gruesome massacre in Kwara State that has now claimed an estimated 170 lives. In a fiery response to the Tuesday night assault on the Woro and Nuku communities, the President has authorized the immediate launch of “Operation Savannah Shield” to hunt down the killers.

Meeting with Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq at the Presidential Villa on Thursday, the President was debriefed on the chilling motives behind the attack. According to official reports, the terrorists identified by local intelligence as the Lakurawa group targeted the villages after five months of failed attempts to force the residents to adopt a radicalized, violent ideology.

“I condemn in the strongest terms this cowardly and beastly attack,” President Tinubu stated. “It is commendable that these community members, though Muslims, refused to be conscripted into a weird belief that promotes violence over peace. Their actions offend our humanity and our shared values as a nation.”

The scale of the tragedy continues to shock the nation. While early estimates were lower, rescue workers and rights groups like Amnesty International now confirm that 170 bodies have been recovered, many with their hands tied or burnt beyond recognition. The massacre is being described as a “punitive strike” against the villagers for their defiance.

In response, a full military battalion has been ordered to move into the Kaiama Local Government Area to dismantle the terrorist hideouts in the vast forests bordering the Benin Republic. The President’s spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, emphasized that this new command is designed to “checkmate these barbaric terrorists” and ensure they “do not go scot-free.”

However, the deployment comes amid heavy criticism of the state’s intelligence response. Survivors revealed that the terrorists had been sending warning letters to the villages since late 2025. As the military begins its sweep, the President has also ordered federal relief agencies to provide immediate aid to the hundreds of families who fled the “dusk of fire” with nothing but their lives.