Emir Bello Suleiman of Zurmi Dies After Five-Year Reign

Bello Suleiman, the Emir of Zurmi in Zamfara State, passed away on Monday afternoon at the Federal Medical Centre in Gusau after five years of leadership. He ascended to the throne in 2021, succeeding his uncle, Abubakar Atiku, who was removed by the state government due to alleged links with banditry.

Atiku was formally deposed in April 2022 and later died in Egypt. During Suleiman's reign, Zurmi faced severe insecurity, highlighted by a bandit attack in May 2024, where the assailants raided the emir’s palace, killed three security personnel, and abducted several residents, including the emir’s chief detail, Buhari Yusuf, and two others.

The bandits accused the late emir of inaction regarding the treatment of Fulani residents by local vigilantes. Zurmi, located near Nigeria's border with Niger Republic, is the second-most-populated town in Zamfara State after Gusau.