Gunmen stormed Yargoje village in northwest Nigeria over the weekend, resulting in the death of at least 50 people and an unspecified number of kidnappings, including women and children, according to residents on Monday.
Despite President Bola Tinubu’s promise to tackle insecurity, attacks by armed gangs, often referred to as bandits, have become almost routine in the northwest. Authorities seem powerless to stop these occurrences.
According to resident Hassan Ya’u, numerous gunmen on motorcycles arrived in Yargoje in the Kankara local government area of Katsina state late on Sunday, firing indiscriminately at people and claiming over 50 lives, including Ya’u’s younger brother.
Abdullahi Yunusa Kankara, another resident, narrowly escaped the assault, describing the village as a “death zone” where nearly every household was affected. He mentioned ongoing efforts to determine the number of abductees, with more victims discovered on Monday morning.
Although Katsina police authorities did not immediately respond to the incident, rural areas in northern Nigeria continue to experience frequent attacks and abductions, amidst a backdrop of a 15-year Islamist insurgency in the northeast and violent conflicts between farmers and herders in north-central regions.