Armed men stormed Kpenya Mosque in the north-central Niger state at around 2pm (1pm UK time) on Friday after first attacking villages, police said. No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks.
Armed men have kidnapped a number of people from a mosque in Nigeria’s north-central Niger state, residents and police have said, in the latest mass abduction in a region plagued by violent gangs.
Residents said scores of people were captured, with some estimating the figure to be around 60 to 80 people. A search for survivors is under way.
The attackers stormed Kpenya Mosque in the Dekara district of the Borgu local government area at around 2pm (1pm UK time) on Friday after first attacking Gidan-Zana and Kpenya villages, police spokesperson Wasiu Abiodun said.
Mr Abiodun did not provide figures but said no lives were lost in the attacks, and said the military was deployed to the area. No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks.
Borgu council chairman Abdullahi Mohammed Nasir said at least 60 people were abducted and an unspecified number of people sustained gunshot injuries while attempting to escape.
“People were abducted while praying,” Mr Nasir said. “That was when the bad people came and surrounded the mosque and took them away.”
At least 30 people have been killed following attacks on four mosques in Borgu Local Government Area of Niger State last Friday.
Terrorists attacked the mosques simultaneously during Juma’at prayers in Dekara, Kpenya, Sabon-Gida and Gidan-Zana communities, abducting dozens of worshippers.
The attackers reportedly assembled the worshippers and marched them into the forest.
Speaking to Daily Trust on Monday, the Chairman of Borgu LGA, Mohammed Nasir Abdullahi, confirmed that about 30 of those abducted had been killed by their captors.
He said the communities had recovered the bodies of the victims and buried them.
“The military has gone in there. The whole place is calm. We lost some people, and the burials were done. Some people ran away to safer grounds.
“From the records I have, those kidnapped were a little above 60. Those that were killed were close to 30,” the chairman said.
He added that some houses, including the residence of the District Head of Dekara, Abubakar Umar, were set ablaze during the attacks.
The chairman said the victims were abducted from the four communities while observing Juma’at prayers on Friday.
Following Friday’s attacks, dozens of residents have fled to New Bussa and the Benin Republic after terrorists threatened to kill anyone who remained in the affected communities.
“Only a few people are in Dekara now. Many people have left,” a resident said.
Police said a joint security operation had been launched to track the attackers and facilitate the rescue of the abducted worshippers.
Meanwhile, a resident in the affected community in Borgu LGA urged the security agencies to mount pressure on the terrorists and use a similar method employed during the rescue of Oriire abductees to secure the release of all those in captivity.
More than 40 students and teachers have been rescued after spending 56 days in captivity, following what the authorities described as a month-long intelligence-driven operation.
Jonah Danjuma, spokesman for the 2 Division, Nigerian Army, Ibadan, said in a statement that the operation focused on identifying the masterminds behind the abduction and dismantling their network and hideouts within the Old Oyo National Park.
He said several arrests were made in Oyo State and other parts of the country, disrupting the group’s activities and putting sustained pressure on its members.
