Representative image of a gun.
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Maiduguri: At least 30 people were killed and several others abducted when gunmen attacked a market in Nigeria's Niger State, police said on Sunday.
Police spokesperson Wasiu Abiodun said the gunmen, locally called bandits, stormed Kasuwan Daji market in Demo village, at around 4:30 pm on Saturday burning stalls and looting food items.
"Over 30 victims lost their lives during the attack, and some persons were also kidnapped. Efforts are ongoing to rescue the kidnapped victims," Abiodun said.
Witnesses said the gunmen arrived on motorcycles and opened fire indiscriminately. They said the violence was part of a series of raids that began on Friday in the nearby villages Agwarra and Borgu.
"Women and children were not spared," said Dauda Shakulle, who was wounded while fleeing. "There has been no presence of security forces since the attacks began. We are currently recovering corpses." Nigerian President Bola Tinubu on Sunday said that he has directed the authorities to hunt down the perpetrators behind the attack.
"I have also directed that all abducted victims be urgently rescued and that security operations around vulnerable communities, especially near forests, be intensified," Tinubu said in a statement.
The Nigerian military did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The attack came weeks after gunmen seized more than 300 children and staff of a Catholic school in the state in central Nigeria. Those victims were released after nearly a month in captivity.
Such banditry has escalated across northwestern and central Nigeria, with armed groups carrying out mass killings and kidnappings in rural communities. Security forces have struggled to contain the violence despite ongoing operations.
Witness Khalid Pissa said the gunmen attacked communities in Kasuwan Daji, and also in nearby Chukama and Shanga. Pissa put the death toll at 40.