Red Cross volunteer Lydia Nwankwo killed in Nigeria ambush

Lydia Nwankwo, a 30-year-old Christian volunteer with the Nigerian Red Cross Society, was killed during an ambush in Sokoto state, Nigeria. The attack occurred around 7 p.m. on October 6, 2026, when unidentified gunmen opened fire on a vehicle carrying a five-person team on the Kajiji-Shagari road in Shagari County.

Nwankwo was returning from field operations in the Kajiji community, following work conducted in the Tambuwal Local Government Area. She was working alongside a development partner supporting the Sokoto State Ministry of Health to provide aid to vulnerable communities, including mothers, children, and the sick in hard-to-reach areas.

Her relatives stated that she was shot in the chest and died at the scene. Local residents reported that the attackers were bandits, with one resident identifying them as jihadists.