In repeated attacks on the Shiroro and Munya Local Government Areas of Niger State, at least 44 people were alleged to have been killed by gunmen thought to be Boko Haram insurgents.

On Saturday, gunmen attacked Galadinma Kolgo, Erena, Chukuba, and Allawa in Shiroro LGA, killing 27 people, including women and children, and kidnapping 31 others.

Aside from that, it was reported that gunmen attacked another 3 communities, namely, Guni, Zagzaga, and Dazza in Munya local government area, killing 17 people, including a blind man, in the early hours of Saturday.

They allegedly kidnapped three mothers and a large number of children, then set fire to their homes and farmland.

It could be recalled that suspected Boko Haram insurgents attacked certain villages in the state in the last three weeks, resulting in multiple deaths and immeasurable hardships for the residents of the affected communities.

When contacted about the incident, Jibril Allawa, President of the Lakpma Youths Association, told DAILY POST that the gunmen kidnapped 28 people in Allawa’s Gyramiya hamlet and are now demanding N60 million in ransom before releasing the victims.

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“They took away 28 persons, three men and twenty-five women,” he said. The residents are currently taking sanctuary at the Internally Displaced Persons camp (IDPs) in Central Primary School, Gwada, and most of the affected communities in the two local government areas are now ghost towns.”

The Co-Convener of Concerned Shiroro Youths, Abubakar Sani Bello Kokki, also confirmed the attacks, saying that Boko Haram insurgents infiltrated the areas in huge numbers on motorbikes, each carrying two or three people, and that they operated for several hours.

“It is really painful the way and manner in which the villagers have been displaced from their homes and are now taking refuge in IDP camps,” Kokki said, adding that “the villagers can no longer harvest their farm produce since the gunmen have warned them to stay away from their farms.”

Attempts to reach the state’s Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Wasiu Abiodun, for a response to the attacks failed as of the time of filing this report.

It will be recalled that Abiodun stated earlier this week at an event organized by the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Niger State Council that the state’s police and other security agencies are doing everything possible to reduce insecurity.