No fewer than 16 people are feared dead, while several others remain missing, following a deadly attack by suspected bandits on Kiliya village near Bagagadi in Dutsinma Local Government Area of Katsina State.
Residents said the assailants struck on Friday shortly after Juma’at prayers, when villagers had gathered to relax and exchange greetings as part of the Eid-el-Kabir celebrations.
A survivor, who recounted the incident, said panic erupted when two armed men riding a motorcycle entered the community.
According to him, residents initially attempted to flee, but the attackers ordered them to stop before opening fire indiscriminately on people in the area.
He explained that the gunmen later moved toward a mechanic’s residence and continued shooting at villagers and passersby.
“After the Friday prayers, we were sitting together in the village.
I had just bought a bowl of local drink from a vendor when the gunmen arrived on a motorcycle,” the witness said.
“People started running. The attackers told us not to run, but moments later they began shooting. The vendor and I escaped into a nearby house and hid there.
“While hiding, we could hear gunshots and cries from different directions. When the shooting stopped and we came out, we found many people lying dead. Among them were some of my relatives. About 16 bodies were counted.”
The witness added that the attack triggered a mass displacement, with hundreds of residents fleeing the village in search of safety.
According to him, more than 400 villagers have taken refuge in Bagagadi, while others relocated to nearby Radda community.
He further disclosed that several residents were still unaccounted for, raising fears that the death toll could increase.
“There are indications that some victims were attacked while working on their farms because bodies were later discovered in surrounding farmlands,” he added.
Another eyewitness, a 14-year-old resident, said additional attackers arrived shortly after the first motorcycle entered the village, intensifying the assault.
A resident of neighbouring Bagagadi community told journalists that over 30 displaced persons, mostly women and children from Kiliya village, were currently being sheltered in his home.
Sources in the area suggested that the attack might have been a retaliatory operation by bandits.
According to local accounts, two suspected bandits believed to be members of a notorious criminal gang were reportedly killed by villagers a few days before the latest assault.
“From what we have gathered, this appears to be a revenge attack.
Two bandits were reportedly killed recently, and information indicated that they belonged to a feared gang operating in the area. That may have prompted this attack,” a source said.
When contacted, the spokesperson for the Katsina State Police Command, DSP Abubakar Sadiq Aliyu, said the incident had not yet been officially reported to the command.
He, however, assured that the police would provide an update once details of the attack were received and verified.
As of the time of filing this report, no further statement had been issued by the command.