Seventy-eight bodies have so far been recovered following a deadly attack by armed bandits on Woro and Nuku communities in Kaiama Local Government Area of Kwara State on Tuesday evening.
The assailants, who reportedly invaded the communities around 6:00 pm, killed residents, set houses and shops ablaze, and abducted several villagers before fleeing into the bush.
A lawmaker representing Gwanabe/Gwaria constituency, Hon. Saidu Baba Ahmed, confirmed that funeral prayers (janazah) were held for the deceased on Wednesday evening.
“We have recovered 78 corpses,75 males and three females. Janazah was performed on them around 6:30 pm, and they were buried in batches of 10, 15 and 20,” he said.
Ahmed added that 35 residents, mostly women, were abducted during the attack, while efforts were ongoing to recover more bodies.
“The information at my disposal indicated that casualties could be higher, as people are still searching the surrounding bushes,” he stated.
Sources in the community disclosed that two children of the village head of Woro were among those killed, while his wife and other children were abducted after the attackers destroyed vehicles in the palace and forced the victims into the forest.
A former member of the Kwara State House of Assembly from Woro community, Hon. Aliyu Mande, earlier confirmed the attack, saying the bandits invaded the town and operated for several hours.
“It’s true that the bandits attacked our community. Houses were burnt and people were killed,” he said.
Meanwhile, Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, in a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Rafiu Ajakaye, condemned the attack and described it as “a cowardly expression of frustration by terrorist cells.”
The governor expressed condolences to the affected communities and assured that security forces had been deployed to restore calm and pursue the attackers.
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