SECURITY checkpoints that were dismantled two weeks ago by the police in Kano, northwest of Nigeria, returned
last weekend following the discovery of arms caches by the government’s Joint Task Force in the city last Monday.
Among those seen were the security checkpoints in Sabon Gari and Fagge Police stations. Also seen was the checkpoint along Audu Bako Road, which where security personnel were seen on Thursday afternoon.
Police spokesman Magaji Majiya news reporters that the lifting of the check-points was required by the police commissioner to relieve residents of the hardship encountered during their daily commuting.
“The Commissioner saw that peace was gradually returning with the inter-agency collaborations and seeing that some of these places are high commercial areas, he decided to ease the difficulties.’’
Soldiers on Monday had uncovered arms cache that they believe belonged to members of the Lebanese political party and militant group Hezbollah, according to statements made the military and Directorate for State Security on Thursday.
Officials said soldiers confiscated the weapons from a home in Kano. The arms, shown on the state-run Nigerian Television Authority, appeared to include badly corroded rocket-propelled grenades, land mines, hand grenades, assault rifles and ammunition.
Intelligence officials also said three Lebanese men had been arrested. The military did not explain why the men had a weapons cache, other than to say they were part of Hezbollah. Kano has a large Lebanese community.
- Additional reporting from the New York Times