There was panic on Wednesday following a clash between rival youth groups in Kwaru and Unguwar Yero communities in Kaduna North Local Government Area of Kaduna State.
The clash, which reportedly left some people injured, was said to have stemmed from a disagreement between youths from the two communities about a week ago, during which three persons sustained injuries.
One of the injured youths from Unguwar Yero reportedly died from injuries sustained during the earlier clash, triggering anger among his friends, who allegedly attempted to avenge his death on Wednesday.
A resident of Kwaru, who identified himself as Sule, said the incident caused panic among residents, forcing some schoolchildren to flee their schools.
He said the incident occurred around 9am when he heard noise and came out to see some youths throwing stones at one another.
“Some youths from Kwaru and Unguwar Yero had a disagreement about a week ago, during which a young man was injured and later died.”
“On Wednesday, after the children had gone to school, we started hearing noise. When I came out, I saw people gathering, while some were throwing stones at one another between the youths from Unguwar Yero and some residents of Kwaru who had gone to the cemetery,” he said.
Sule said the incident had heightened tension among residents, recalling that the two communities had experienced similar disagreements in the past before relative peace was restored.
He confirmed that operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS), police and Mobile Police (MOPOL), among other security personnel, had been deployed to the area to restore normalcy.
Another resident, Mohammed in the area, expressed concern over the recurring disagreements between young people from the two communities.
He said many of the youths were friends who often gathered together to smoke, adding that it was unfortunate that disagreements between them were sometimes given ethnic or religious interpretations.
“They are youths who are friends, but whenever there is a disagreement among them, some people try to turn it into an ethnic or religious issue. That is not right,” he said.
A teacher in the area, Bashir, also confirmed that three youths sustained injuries during the earlier clash, adding that one of them later died.
Bashir, however, said normal activities had started returning to the communities following the deployment of security personnel.
There were also indications that the tension had threatened to spread to neighbouring communities before security operatives intervened.
When contacted, the Kaduna State Police Command spokesman, DSP Mansir Hassan, confirmed the incident, saying the situation had been brought under control following the deployment of security personnel.
“The situation is under control following a massive deployment of security personnel to the communities,” he said.
He declined further comments on the incident.
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