After suspected bandits attacked worshipers in a mosque in Saya-Saya village in Kaduna state’s Ikara Local Government Area on Friday, September 1, seven Muslims are feared dead.
Isha’i (Sunset) prayers were being held in the mosque when the gunmen approached and started shooting at the worshippers, according to reports.
While two other victims were killed at various locations around the mosque, five victims were shot to death there.
Malam Abdulrahaman Yusuf, the village chief, confirmed the incident and claimed that one of those killed inside the mosque was the leader of the village’s vigilante.
“We believed they tracked him (the vigilante boss) to the mosque so they could attack him.
They arrived and began firing while we were inside the mosque offering prayers.
A driver who delivered food to the village was also killed, and five people were killed at the mosque. The other person was killed in a nearby village, he claimed.
He claimed that by the time security forces, including police and soldiers from the Palgore and Ikara areas, arrived at the scene at 12:30 am, the bandits had already left the village.
Mansir Alhassan, the state police command’s interim public relations officer, confirmed the incident and said security personnel had been dispatched to nearby bushes to track down the offenders.
He claims that the attack was not reported to the police or other security organizations until the attackers had already left the scene.
