At least 30 killed in Nigeria market attack, police say

At least 30 people were killed and many were kidnapped in an attack by gunmen on a market in Nigeria’s Niger State, police said.

Police spokesman Wasiu Abiodun said gunmen, locally called bandits, broke into the Kasuwan Daji market in Demo village around 4.30pm on Saturday, burning stalls and looting food items.

Abiodun said, “More than 30 victims lost their lives in the attack, and some people were kidnapped. Efforts to rescue the kidnapped victims are continuing.”

Eyewitnesses said gunmen arrived on motorcycles and opened fire indiscriminately.

They said the violence was part of a series of crackdowns that began on Friday in the nearby villages of Agwarra and Borgu in the north of the country.

“Women and children were not spared,” said Dauda Shakulle, who was injured while escaping.

“Security forces have not been around since the attacks started. We are currently recovering the bodies.”

The Nigerian military did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The attack came weeks after gunmen seized more than 300 children and staff from a Catholic school in the central Nigerian state.

The victims were released after nearly a month in captivity.

This form of banditry has increased in northwestern and central Nigeria, with armed groups carrying out mass killings and kidnappings in rural communities.

Security forces are having difficulty controlling the violence despite ongoing operations.

Witness Khalid Pissa said gunmen attacked communities in Kasuwan Daji as well as nearby Chukama and Shanga.

Pissa put the death toll at 40.