Nigeria: 200 killed, thousands displaced in village attacks by motorbike bandits
- At least 200 people have died in multiple raids in Zamfara state; relief has been sent to area in northwestern Nigeria
- Sadiya Umar Farouq, nation’s minister of humanitarian affairs, called the killings ‘horrific and tragic’ after ‘invasion by bandits’
Nigeria said Sunday that gunmen killed at least 200 people and displaced thousands more in multiple raids in the northwest over the last week, dealing a heavy blow to authorities struggling to restore order.
The minister of humanitarian affairs Sadiya Umar Farouq called the past week’s attacks in Zamfara state “horrific and tragic,” giving the first official toll after details began filtering out early Saturday.
“Over 200 persons were buried... due to the invasion by bandits,” she said in a statement confirmed by her spokeswoman Nneka Ikem Anibeze on Sunday.
“We also worried about the displaced persons who are fleeing in their hundreds from their communities,” the minister added, saying that relief material was sent to Zamfara.
The minister said more 10,000 people were displaced when “their homes were razed by the bandits while scores are still missing.”
Residents gained access to their villages on Saturday after the military captured the communities to organise mass burials, they told Reuters.
