• Stop glorifying terrorists, minister charges journalists
• Northern senators worry over recent abductions

Terrorists have killed six persons and injured many others at Shekawa village in Batsari Local Council of Katsina State.

This was as the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, appealed to media practitioners to refrain from giving undue attention to the nefarious activities of terrorists in the country.

However, the Northern Senators Forum (NSF) has expressed worry over the spate of kidnappings this month.

The terrorists attacked the Katsina community on Tuesday night into the early hours of Wednesday. They also razed houses in their trail.

Sources familiar with the incident said the terrorists attacked the community, few days after security operatives had raided their hideout in a forest reserve area.

It was learnt that the terrorists suspected that some of the community members had invited the security operatives to dislodge them from the area, and that the operation led to the killing of their members.

“When the terrorists stormed the area, they began mocking the community members for inviting security operatives to dislodge them. The attack seemed to be a revenge mission for the terrorists,” one of the sources said.

He added that the terrorists took their time and operated for more than 10 hours.
On the glorification of terrorists, the minister reminded the media that criminals were waging not only a physical battle but also a psychological war to undermine the morale of the Nigerian military.

Idris made the appeal on Wednesday while hosting media executives and journalists to a special Iftar (breaking of fast) in Kano.

“As media managers, we must be very careful to not play into their hands, through reporting that might be misleading or sensational or that undermines the morale of our security personnel,” Idris stressed.

Since the end of February, over 500 people have been kidnapped in a series of mass abductions in the North East and North West regions.

The Chairman, NSF, Abdulaziz Yar’Adua, described the distressing state of affairs concerning the recent wave of violence and kidnappings in the North as a major concern to the forum.

He said: “The series of events that have unfolded in Kaduna State, beginning with the kidnapping of 286 students and staff from a school on March 7, the despicable attack on worshippers in a mosque on March 8, the abduction of 61 more persons on March 12, followed by 14 individuals on March 17, and a staggering total of 87 individuals in Kujuru on March 18, among others, are not only reprehensible but demand urgent and resolute action.

“We are committed to pursuing a lasting solution to this menace. We will not rest until the security situation is significantly improved and the perpetrators of these heinous acts are brought to justice.”