At least 48 people have been killed in attacks by gunmen on three villages in Zamfara state in northwestern Nigeria, according to a local official and a resident. This violence is the latest attributed to criminal gangs, “bandits” who have terrorized central and northwestern Nigeria for years, looting, kidnapping and killing the inhabitants.
“A total of 48 people were killed by the bandits in the three villages (Damri, Sabon Garin and Kalahe) attacked on Friday afternoon,” said Bakura district administrative official Aminu Suleiman, confirming a report given by a inhabitant. The village of Damri was the most affected, where the bandits killed 32 people, including two policemen, said Aminu Suleiman. “The gunmen attacked a hospital in Damri where they shot dead patients receiving treatment and burned a police vehicle, killing two security personnel,” he said.
The army, subsequently deployed in the area, managed to scare off the attackers, according to the same source. “The arrival of the soldiers forced the bandits to retreat, leaving behind the cattle and food they looted,” added Damri resident Abubakar Maigoro.
“The right to peace”
In the wake of the attacks, President Muhammadu Buhari, criticized for his inability to stem the violence, called on the security forces to “do everything to put an immediate end to these horrible massacres” in the country. “Rural populations in Zamfara and elsewhere must have the right to peace,” he insisted.
Despite military operations and amnesties granted by the authorities, attacks are increasing in the northwest and center of Africa’s most populous country. In the past two months alone, gangs have blasted and fired on a train from the capital Abuja, kidnapping dozens of passengers, gunning down more than 100 villagers and massacring around 10 gang members. self-defense. And in early January, more than 200 villagers were killed in Zamfara state.
According to the NGO Acled, the bandits killed more than 2,600 civilians in 2021, an increase of 250% compared to 2020. Designated as “terrorists” by the authorities at the beginning of the year, the bandits have been operating since camps hidden in a vast forest straddling the states of Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna and Niger.