A military combat drone has crashed in the Kontagora forest area of Niger State, sparking fresh concerns about aerial security operations in the North-Central region.
The unmanned aerial vehicle reportedly went down on Friday under circumstances that are still unclear. A photograph obtained by SaharaReporters shows the drone badly damaged and lying in a forested area. Although it crashed, there was no explosion at the site.
As of the time of this report, it remains uncertain where the drone was launched from, and neither the Nigerian military nor the Niger State government has issued an official statement on the incident.
The development comes amid heightened attention on military activities involving aerial weapons. SaharaReporters had earlier reported a separate incident in Sokoto State, where men suspected to be herdsmen were seen handling and mocking what they claimed were fragments of a bomb allegedly dropped by the United States military on Christmas Day.
In a widely circulated video, the men were heard speaking in Hausa as they casually played with the metallic object, laughing and downplaying any potential danger. Some of them mocked the strength of the U.S. military, boasting that no foreign weapon could successfully strike Nigerian soil, while one person prayed that the object would not explode.
The incidents have raised public questions around aerial operations, weapon safety, and official communication, especially as authorities are yet to clarify the circumstances surrounding both situations
