Twenty-six farmers killed in an attack by armed bandits in Nigeria’s northwestern Zamfara State were buried on Friday, local officials said.
The victims were working on farmland in the Kaura Namoda Local Government Area when gunmen attacked them on Thursday.
The killings have heightened fear across rural communities in Zamfara, where repeated raids by heavily armed criminal groups have forced many farmers to abandon their land.
Zamfara Deputy Governor Mani Malam Mummuni visited the affected community on behalf of Governor Dauda Lawal Dare and urged residents to remain patient, according to a statement issued by the state government.
“The governor asked me to tell you to be more patient. It’s not just you; he is aware of what everyone across Zamfara is going through,” Mummuni said.
He rejected the possibility of negotiations with the armed groups, describing previous dialogue efforts as deceptive.
“By God’s grace, we will deal with them, but there will be no talks because it is deception, it is lies, and it is terrorism,” he said.
The attack is the latest in a sustained wave of violence targeting farming communities, highways and rural settlements across northwestern and north-central Nigeria.
Armed groups commonly referred to as bandits have carried out killings, mass kidnappings, cattle theft and extortion, disrupting agricultural activity and displacing thousands of residents.
At least 17 farmers were killed and 13 others wounded in June while working near Goron Namaye in Zamfara’s Maradun Local Government Area.
That attack came days after gunmen abducted 39 residents who had gathered for talks aimed at securing the release of previously kidnapped relatives.
Earlier in June, six farmers were killed, about 10 others were wounded and several residents were abducted during an attack on the Gora community, also in Maradun.
The violence has spread beyond Zamfara, with armed groups carrying out deadly raids and mass abductions in Katsina, Kaduna, Niger and Sokoto states. Similar attacks have also increasingly been reported in parts of north-central and southwestern Nigeria.
Earlier this month, Nigeria’s military said troops supported by local vigilantes killed more than 300 suspected bandits during a major operation in Zamfara, describing it as one of the largest recent offensives against armed groups in the region.
Despite military gains, the gangs continue to regroup in remote forest areas and finance their operations through ransom payments, illegal mining, cattle rustling and extortion.