From John Adams, Minna
The Chairman, Magama Local Government Council of Niger State, Mallam Safiyanu Garba Ibeto, has confirmed the invasion of some communities in his local government by gunmen, on Friday, where an unspecified number of people, mostly women and children, were abducted.
Several people were injured in the attack which the chairman said was carried out on Friday afternoon, shortly after the Friday prayers.
Communities that were invaded include Mabirni, Zoma, Bado, Yangalu and Buga Zabbi, a few kilometres from Ibeto town.
A source close to the communities disclosed that the gunmen, said to be numbering well over 100, riding on motorcycles, shot sporadically into the air to scare the villagers and in the process injured some of them who tried to escape.
A number of the villagers, mostly women and children, were either kidnapped or injured, while entire cattle in these communities were taken away by the gunmen.
The gunmen also took their time to cart away food stuff, provision and other items as all the shops in the communities were burgled.
Already the gunmen have demanded N3 million ransom for the release of each of the abducted victims.
An elderly woman identified as Malama Khadijat Abdullahi, whose two daughters were among the abductees, said they have been contacted by the bandits for negotiation.
She disclosed that N3 million was demanded by the gunmen for each victim, but said the negotiation continued yesterday.
In another development, gunmen in their number stormed Kpakegyewi and Alaiyi communities in Kudodo district, Shiroro local government area, on Saturday, killing 10 people, among them four local vigilantes and six villagers.
The victims, two women and four men, were among those who escaped from their communities after the massacre of security agents and other villagers in Galadiman Kogo, three weeks, and have been taking refuge at the Internally Displaced Peoples camp in Zumba community.
They, however, returned to their homes to meet their death, on Saturday, after complaining of lack of food and acute shortage of water in the IDPs camp.