Sling Shots Defend Against Terrorists’ AK 47s in Nigeria’s Plateau State
Civilians with sling shots and homemade shotguns are scrambling to repel terrorists with assault rifles in Nigeria’s north, according to a leader of the group that saw action the night of July 31.
“We laid in the grass firing stones with our slingshots and firing the few Dane guns [shotguns] in our possession to scare the attackers,” said a civilian watch leader, who declined to give his name.
“The locally made ones [guns] fire only pellets not bullets. The shots don’t go more than 50 meters and can’t be automatic, unlike the AK47/9 [used by the terrorists] which can fire up to 3 rounds/sec and a distance of 300-400m,” wrote Gabriel Ad’Ofikwu, a retired Major in the Nigerian Army, in a text message. “They are by far inefficient to repel the attackers.”