Greater than 100 individuals, together with ladies and kids, have been kidnapped when gunmen raided 4 villages in Nigeria’s northwestern Zamfara state on Sunday, the data commissioner and residents stated on Monday.
Kidnapping has change into endemic in northwest Nigeria as roving gangs of armed males abduct individuals from villages, highways and farms, and demand ransom cash from their kin.
Greater than 40 individuals have been kidnapped from Kanwa village in Zurmi native authorities space of Zamfara, Zamfara info commissioner Ibrahim Dosara and one native resident stated.
One other 37, largely ladies and kids have been taken in Kwabre group in the identical native authorities space, the resident added, declining to be named for safety causes.
“Proper now Kanwa village is abandoned, the bandits divided themselves into two teams and attacked the group. They kidnapped youngsters aged between 14 to 16 years and girls,” the Kanwa village resident stated.
In Yankaba and Gidan Goga communities of Maradun Native authorities space, not less than 38 individuals have been kidnapped whereas engaged on their farms, residents stated.
Info commissioner Dosara accused the gunmen of utilizing abductees as human shields in opposition to air raids from the navy.
Nigerian forces have launched a sequence of airstrikes in Zamfara and different troubled northern states, neutralizing many insurgents and dislodging them from their hideouts within the area’s huge forest reserves.
The nation’s navy has additionally come beneath criticism after a few of its air raids have been discovered to have prompted civilian deaths.
Final month, Nigeria’s Air Pressure stated it was reviewing “all allegations of unintentional air strikes on civilians in addition to assessment the circumstances resulting in such strikes.”
