Armed men attacked a military position and gold-mining sites in Bindin, Nigeria, in early October, while residents later told Premium Times they faced extortion and reports gave widely different death tolls.
Bindin is in Maru Local Government Area of Zamfara State, where artisanal miners were working. Police spokesman Abubakar Yazid confirmed an incident in Bindin to ICIR and referred questions about details to the military. Army spokesman Lt. Col. Olaniyi Osoba told ICIR that the military would not provide details until its operation ended.
The accounts give competing explanations for the violence. Premium Times’ sources connected it to fighters killed by rival armed groups and higher charges on miners. AFP’s local sources said miners had killed a gang member who sought a share of their gold, while ICIR’s sources described miners resisting payments as security improved and threats associated with the military’s presence. Their explanations diverge, and none settles what sparked the violence.
Premium Times reported, citing residents and security sources, that fighters led by Dankarami Gwaska demanded ₦50 million from Bindin and nearby farming communities. Residents told Premium Times about ₦360 million collected over two weeks. Premium Times also reported that the base’s destruction prompted widespread flight. Premium Times further reported an alleged arrangement under which laborers received one-third of the extracted gold and the operating entity the rest.
Casualty estimates differ and may refer to separate stages of the violence. Reuters reported that three eyewitnesses put troop deaths in the Oct. 5 camp attack at 25 or more. A military source who took part in efforts to reinforce security in the community said they saw 25 bodies. A village head and victims’ relatives separately told Reuters at least 100 people died at a mining pit; Reuters did not independently confirm the counts.
AFP, citing local sources, reported 12 soldiers and five miners killed in a shootout. ICIR cited witnesses, victims and a community leader who reported eight soldiers, one police officer and at least 23 miners killed. The source accounts do not provide a basis for combining these figures, and the military has not published a toll.
On Oct. 9, troops from Sector 2 of Operation FANSAN YAMMA found explosive devices at two locations on the Magami–Hannutara–Dansadau road, according to a statement by operation spokesman Lt. Col. Aliyu Danja. An Explosive Ordnance Disposal team destroyed one device and made the other safe. The military statement gave no attribution for the devices.
