Not less
than 18 worshippers were killed by gunmen who attacked a mosque in northern
Nigeria during early morning prayers Monday, local police told The Associated
Press.
The
horrific incident took place in Mazakuka village in Mashegu Local Government
Area of Niger State. The armed men, believed to be ethnic Fulani nomadic
herders, managed to escape.
This year
alone, there have been multiple ethnic violence which has caused hundreds of
casualties in a fight over access to water and land. Some of the Fulani have
taken up arms against the local Hausa communities.
“The gunmen
came around the mosque and started shooting them,” Alhassan Isah, Chairman of
Mashegu Local Government Area, told the AP. He said another four people were
also wounded.
Niger
police commissioner Monday Kuryas said the attack was also connected to the
conflict between the villagers and the Fulani herders. Nigeria’s northwest and
central regions have witnessed a sudden spike in deadly violence.
Communities
that are most affected are usually in hard-to-reach areas, such as the latest
in Mazakuka, which is about 270 kilometres away from the state capital.
The group
of armed men often outnumber security operatives in these regions. The lack of
law enforcement, together with poorly armed security personnel, often results
in attacks that could last for hours before help finally arrives.
Mr Kuryas
acknowledged that the “very difficult” terrain in Mashegu made it even harder
for the police to respond to the security alert swiftly. “It is not accessible
by road,” he said.
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