Gunmen have killed 48 persons in an
attack on Kizara in Zamfara State, a government spokesman, Ibrahim
Birnin-Magaji, said on Wednesday.
It was learnt that the invaders, who perpetrated the massacre, arrived in the community before dawn on motorbikes.
The gunmen were said to have climbed a
hill overlooking the village and opened fire indiscriminately on the
residents before carrying out house-to-house attacks.
Birnin-Magaji said, “There was an attack
by armed bandits early Tuesday on Kizara where 48 residents were killed
in apparent targeted killings by cattle rustlers that have been
terrorising the state for some time now.”
Those killed, he added, included the local chief, chief imam and the head of a vigilance group in the village.
Eyewitnesses also reported that the gunmen arrived in Kizara before dawn on motorbikes.
Birnin-Magaji told AFP that the attackers took positions on a hill, before shooting indiscriminately.
He said, “They later moved house to
house, telling residents that they were looking for members of local
vigilance (groups) whom they said had been disturbing them.”
The attack was attributed to an ongoing feud involving cattle thieves in the state.
The commissioner of police in the state, Akila Usman, confirmed the killings.
He, nonetheless, described the invaders as armed robbers.
A similar attack was said to have been carried out last year in the community.
Meanwhile, the Defence Headquarters on
Wednesday said the Special Forces had arrested eight of the terrorists
that attacked residents of Borno and Yobe states last Saturday.
A statement by the Director, Defence
Information, Brig.-Gen. Chris Olukolade, described the attack as “a
typical end-game strategy often employed by insurgents across the
world.”
Olukolade said the attack was not a relapse in insurgency but an isolated incident.
According to him, the Special Forces
have stepped up the mop-up, cordon and search operations to ensure that
the vestiges of terrorism are effectively ended in the states.
He added, “Rather, this trend of
sneaking in to carry out isolated attack on soft targets as a way of
seeking attention, is a typical end-game strategy often employed by
insurgents all over the world; In this instance, the recent activities
are signs of desperation of a decimated insurgent group attempting to
hang on to public consciousness.”
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