A Zamfara State woman, Aisha, has given a chilling account of her ordeal in the hands of armed bandits, revealing how she was compelled to bury her own children after they were killed in captivity.
Aisha, who spoke in Hausa during an interview with Deutsche Welle, said her life changed forever when gunmen attacked the vehicle she was travelling in with her three children and other passengers. The assailants reportedly opened fire on the road, forcing the vehicle to a halt before abducting everyone on board into the forest.
According to her, what followed was months of agony marked by starvation, brutality and repeated loss. She said she spent over six months in captivity, during which she watched her children suffer severe deprivation and constant abuse.
She disclosed that two of her children were killed first and she was ordered to bury them inside the forest. Later, her infant son also died after sustaining injuries, leaving her completely alone among captives.
Aisha recounted a particularly harrowing moment when the bandits allegedly considered feeding the body of her deceased baby to dogs before she pleaded to be allowed to bury him herself. She said she was handed a shovel and forced to carry out the burial.
Beyond the deaths, she described daily suffering, saying the captives were routinely starved, beaten and left in poor health conditions deep inside the forest.
She eventually escaped alongside others in the middle of the night, trekking through the bush for days before reaching a nearby settlement after three days of wandering.
Now safe, Aisha said the psychological scars remain unbearable, adding that she urgently needs medical attention and support to recover from the trauma.
Her account adds to the growing number of testimonies emerging from banditry-hit areas in Zamfara, Katsina and Sokoto, where communities continue to face repeated abductions, killings and displacement.
(Daily Trust)
0 Comments