Gunmen have killed 18 villagers in the northwestern Nigerian state of Katsina, police told AFP on Wednesday.
A large number of gunmen arrived on motorcycles in the village of Chaua, in the Batsari district, on Monday night. Gunmen opened fire on residents, looting and setting houses on fire, said Gabo Isa, a police spokesman.
Armed gangs, members of which authorities generally call bandits – “thugs” or “gangs” – have terrorized the population of northwestern and central Nigeria for the past decade. They attack villages, commit animal thefts, kidnap in order to ransom.
“The blasts killed 18 people and injured another in the attack, while one resident is still missing,” he said, adding that gunmen had stolen several cattle.
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According to local sources, the attack was carried out to “punish” the villagers for refusing to cooperate with the gangs that are raiding the area.
The gangs have strongholds in the Rugo forest, which extends to the states of Zamfara, Katsina, Cantuna and Niger.
Recently, these gangs have intensified their attacks on schools and universities: they have kidnapped hundreds of pupils and students en masse for ransom.
On Monday, more than 100 high school students in the neighboring province of Cantuna were abducted by gunmen who demanded food yesterday to distribute to them, awaiting ransom.
