Putri Anggraini
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu has directed security agencies to track down the armed group behind coordinated attacks on four villages in a remote area of Niger state that left dozens dead and may have seen hundreds more dragged into captivity.
The assaults, which took place last Friday, struck Dekara, Gidan Zana, Sabon Gida and Masaka. Witnesses told the BBC that several mosques were hit at the same time while worshippers were at prayer, and that the attackers wore military-style uniforms.
Police spokesperson Wasiu Abiodun said more than 40 people were killed, although the final death toll has yet to be confirmed. A local youth leader estimated that as many as 500 residents might have been taken away by the gunmen, a figure that officials have not independently verified.
Pressure on the government intensified after the abductors released footage on social media showing captives seated in a forest setting. The youth leader, who declined to give his name, said he identified numerous neighbours in the clip, including an elderly man from Gidan Zana whom he described as a grandfather figure to the community. For some families, he noted, the video brought comfort simply because it confirmed their loved ones were alive — unlike others still waiting for any word on missing relatives.
Authorities had initially attributed the raids to bandits, the criminal networks notorious for mass abductions and ransom-driven violence across parts of northern Nigeria, but no demand for money has so far been reported.
A local official told the BBC that the assailants laid improvised explosives around the affected communities as they marched captives into the bush, and that a teenage boy died when one of the devices went off during an escape attempt. Survivors with severe wounds are being treated in hospital, while many frightened residents have abandoned the area altogether, fleeing to nearby states or crossing into Benin.
In a statement released through presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu condemned the killings and abductions, insisting the perpetrators "will not go scot-free" and calling them enemies of both peace and humanity. He also offered condolences to bereaved families.
The violence marks another grim escalation in the Borgu region, which sits along the borders of Kebbi and Kwara states as well as Benin. Earlier this month, police announced the rescue of 145 people seized from four other villages nearby, and local authorities warn that jihadist groups are increasingly active in north-western Nigeria and the border belt, with some fighters reportedly entering communities and enforcing religious rules on residents.
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