Army Denies Residence Abduction Claims, Confirms Six Imams Seized by Bandits on Way to 2027 Prayer Session

The Nigerian Army has strongly refuted media reports claiming that a group of Islamic scholars was abducted from the residence of former Zamfara State Governor, Senator Abdul’aziz Abubakar Yari, in Talata Mafara Local Government Area.

The clarification was issued by the Acting Deputy Director of Army Public Relations for the 8 Division and Sector 2 of Operation FANSAN YAMMA, Lieutenant Colonel Olaniyi Osoba. While the military dismissed rumors linking the kidnappings directly to the lawmaker’s private compound as “entirely false and misleading”, it confirmed that a security breach did occur involving the clerics elsewhere.

According to security and intelligence assessments, the victims—identified as six Juma’at Imams—were ambushed by suspected bandits while traveling from the Sububu forest axis in Bakura Local Government Area toward Talata Mafara.

Local sources and police confirmations revealed that the clerics were responding to an official invitation by Senator Yari, who serves as the Director-General of the Tinubu 2027 Re-election Campaign Council, to attend a large-scale special prayer session scheduled to draw nearly 3,000 Imams to pray for national peace and the political success of the administration. The victims were intercepted roughly three kilometers from Damri village at Gidan Suleiman Bature within the Gonar Sarkin Forest.

The Zamfara State Police Command spokesperson, DSP Yazid Abubakar, confirmed the figure of six abducted scholars, stating that tactical units have been mobilized to comb the region.

In its official statement, the military command urged members of the public and media platforms to exercise restraint and avoid circulating unverified details or sensationalized narratives. The Army warned that propagating false location data can create unnecessary public panic and potentially compromise ongoing tactical rescue operations in high-risk zones. Security forces have assured families and community stakeholders that joint rescue efforts are operating at full throttle to secure the safe return of the kidnapped clerics.