Soni Daniel, Abuja

There were heightened fears on Saturday that terrorists might launch reprisal attacks across the Northwest after suffering heavy losses, which swept away many of their commanders and foot soldiers in Zamfara State.
Vanguard gathered from a top security source on Monday that a series of strikes carried out by the military and Volunteer Force in Zamfara culminated in the deaths of many terror leaders and their fighters, among them, the son of a notorious kingpin, Ado Aliero, and several commanders.
A report by Zagazola Makama, a security expert on terror activities, said that the planned reprisals are believed to be linked to sustained offensives conducted by Nigerian military forces in collaboration with the hybrid security units under Operation FANSAN YANMA.
The operations, according to Makama, targeted bandit enclaves in the Tsafe Local Government Area of Zamfara State and surrounding forest corridors.
According to the security expert, the operations reportedly led to the killing of no fewer than  65 armed bandits, including high-profile commanders operating under the network of Ado Aliero, a notorious figure linked to years of violent attacks, kidnappings, and cattle rustling across the northwest.
Other commanders reportedly eliminated during the offensive included Dogo Sule, Iliya Mai Rasha, and some field leaders who coordinated attacks across Tsafe, Maru and surrounding communities.
The heavy losses are believed to have significantly disrupted the operational structure of the criminal network, just as indications suggest attempts by surviving elements to regroup and launch retaliatory attacks against security formations and nearby communities.
Makama further hinted  that the planned reprisals are also said to involve large-scale movement of armed fighters across forest routes, with motorcycles used for rapid mobilisation and coordination across multiple axes.
Sources said the movement involved suspected bandits operating on over 200 motorcycles, assembling around the Unguwar Tsamiya forest axis.
There were also indications that notorious bandit leader, Bello Turji, had been linked to the planned mobilization.
Security sources also said the sustained operations also dismantled several bandit enclaves in Munhaye and adjoining forest belts, thereby disrupting logistics networks and led to freeing victims previously held in captivity.
It was gathered that one of the slain commanders, Kachalla Biyabiki, was said to have held several kidnap victims at the time of the operation, while another leader, Kachalla Dogon Bete, was also neutralised during the engagement.
The development, according to intelligence officials, has significantly weakened the operational structure of Ado Aliero’s network, but may also trigger retaliatory violence from surviving fighters seeking revenge.
Security authorities said the latest intelligence pointed to the likelihood of reprisal attacks, particularly against soft targets and isolated rural communities.
They however, said that surveillance and troop deployments had been intensified across vulnerable locations, with emphasis on forest fringes and highway corridors in Tsafe, Maru, and neighbouring areas.
Vanguard gathered on Monday that Operation FANSAN YANMA forces, alongside DSS operatives and hybrid units, were carrying out clearance operations aimed at dismantling the remaining bandit camps and preventing regrouping across the North-West theatre.