The Jigawa State Police Command announced on Thursday that three people had been officially injured in fighting between farmers and herders near Baranda Forest in Kiyawa Local Government Area, Jigawa.
“We received the information about the incident on Tuesday at about 2:15 p.m.,” DSP Lawal Shiisu, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), said in a statement.
“On receipt of the report, the Divisional Police Officer of Kiyawa Division, alongside his patrol team, rushed to the scene.
Representatives from the Kiyawa Local Government, the Association of Farmers of Nigeria (AFAN), the chairmen of Kautal Hore and Miyetti Allah, and the village chiefs of the four impacted communities were on the team.
“While dialogue was ongoing among the critical stakeholders, the police team seized the opportunity to identify three injured victims and rescue six others who were about to be attacked,” he said.
The injured were taken to the hospital and treated before being released, the PPRO continued. He asserts that no arrests were made in connection with the incident in order to quell further unrest.
However, Shiisu stated that the police had identified and would be inviting two of the herders’ leaders.
According to him, an initial inquiry had shown that the herders had acted on false information claiming that the state government had taken away farmlands designated for cultivating within the forest reserve.
The PPRO said that while patrols had been stepped up to prevent more breaches of peace, normalcy had been restored in the affected villages.
