At dawn, pandemonium descended on Kukawa, a town in the Gwoza Local Government Area, Borno State. The soldiers were attacked and killed in acts of violence as a schoolgirl was kidnapped before the assailants dispersed into the night. The fear explosion shattered the peace, and terror-stricken families ran in troops over the border to Cameroon in order to escape the brutality and rescue their loved ones. It was a sudden and brutal reminder of the fragile security that so many are contending with.
Homes stood abandoned as families ran for their lives beyond Nigeria’s borders, diminishing Kukawa from a quiet village it was to a ghost town. Desolate streets and abandoned loads testified to a population frightened away. In the aftermath, uncertainty hung in the air: Why were the soldiers killed? Will the girl be found? And how long will Kukawa remain empty, its people scattered by violence?
