By Mike Odeh James
Kajuru Local Governance Area Still Scarred by Mass Church Kidnapping
(Kaduna) — Three farmers walked to their fields at midday Saturday, Oct. 10, to gather food for their hungry families. Fulani gunmen on motorbikes were waiting for them.
The farmers were the last of seven Christians abducted by the Fulani Ethnic Militia (FEM) in two days of raids on Kurmin Wali and Iburu, two villages in Kajuru County [LGA], Kaduna State. One other villager was shot and wounded.
The kidnappers have demanded 18 million naira, about $13,500, for the Kurmin Wali captives.
“The Rest Ran Away”
The first strike on Kurmin Wali came at about 11 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 9, 2026, as villagers were preparing for bed.
“They came in their numbers on motorbikes, about 20 Fulanis, and seized only two,” Ishaku Dan Azumi, the village chief of Kurmin Wali, told TruthNigeria. “The rest of the villagers ran away, so they could not take more.”
The village thought the worst was over.
“We thought that was the end of it,” Dan Azumi said.
It was not. At about noon on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026, farmers went to their fields to bring home food. The same band returned on motorbikes and seized three more, the chief said.
The kidnappers have since told the village it must pay 18 million naira ($11,000) before the five are released.
For Kurmin Wali, terror is familiar. On Jan. 18, 2026, gunmen stormed three churches during worship and carried off more than 160 worshippers. Dan Azumi escaped. State officials and police initially denied the abduction happened. The captives were freed in early February, and it remains unclear whether ransom was paid.
Iburu Hit Again
Iburu, also in Kajuru County, was struck twice within hours Friday.
At about 1 a.m. Friday, Oct. 9, gunmen invaded Iburu Kampani and shot one person, according to Ado Alipiri, chairman of the IDP Camp in Kajuru. At 7:45 a.m., they struck again, ambushing residents on farmland.
They abducted two young men, Ado said: Friday Babangida, 25, reported to be a pastor, and Filinus Kaura, 23.
It was the second raid on Iburu Kampani in less than two weeks. On Sept. 27, 2026, gunmen shot dead Paul Atteh, 21, and abducted four people, including a 2-year-old boy and a 7-month-old baby.
“We have been unable to sleep. The terrorists are now on the prowl day and night,” Irmiya Yunana, an Iburu resident, told TruthNigeria.
By TruthNigeria’s count, at least 29 people have been abducted in Kajuru since Sept. 19, 2026, including two four-month-old babies from Kikwari 2.
TruthNigeria called the Kaduna State Police Command’s PRO for comment, but the call was not answered.
A Ring Around Kaduna City
The raids are part of a widening belt of abductions around Kaduna, the state capital.
In neighboring Chikun County, gunmen raided Alrahus Estate in Millennium City on Oct. 5, 2026. They seized a couple, their six-month-old baby and a pregnant woman. The kidnappers released a video demanding 300 million naira, about $225,000. Residents told Morning Star News four more families were taken in Maraban Rido and Bagado.
The pattern stretches across Nigeria’s Middle Belt, where Fulani Terrorists have raided Christian farming communities in southern Kaduna, Plateau, Benue and Taraba. On Aug. 17, 2026, they struck three villages south of Jos within an hour, killing 27. Survivors said soldiers three miles away did not answer calls.
Farm ambushes like Kurmin Wali are part of strategy. Villagers who cannot reach fields cannot feed families and eventually abandon land.
Pressure From Abroad
The attacks come as Washington weighs whether to keep Nigeria on its religious-freedom blacklist.
President Donald Trump designated Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) on Oct. 31, 2025, over persecution of Christians.
“Christians are being persecuted all over the world,” Trump told the UN General Assembly on Sept. 22, 2025.
Rep. Riley Moore, R-W.Va., has urged the administration to keep the designation. In July, the House passed a State Department spending bill with an amendment by Rep. Greg Steube to withhold aid until Nigeria curbs violence and punishes perpetrators. It awaits the Senate.
Open Doors’ 2026 World Watch List counted 3,490 Christians killed for faith in Nigeria, more than 70 percent of 4,849 worldwide.
In Kurmin Wali, five neighbors are gone, and the village must find 18 million naira to bring them home.
Mike Odeh James is a conflict reporter for TruthNigeria.
