About 18 persons were reportedly killed when armed bandits invaded two communities in violence-prone Zamfara State on New Year day.
The sources say the gunmen stormed Dutsin kure and Manasa in Tsafe local government on Tuesday leaving deaths and destruction in their trail.
Nine persons were reportedly shot dead in Dutsin kure, while another nine were killed in Manasa in the early hours of Tuesday.
The attackers stormed the two towns 72 hours after Governor Abdulaziz Yari held a security meeting with security chiefs and traditional chiefs after a similar bloodbath a few days ago.
Sources say the attackers stormed the towns in a convoy of motorcycles, armed with assorted weapons including AK 47 rifles.
PREMIUM TIMES learnt from a survivor that the bandits operated unchallenged for hours after threatening to deal with anyone who opposed their movement.
Read Also:
“Many of the survivors have fled the towns for neighbouring places,” the survivor said.”Those who are close to Katsina have gone there while those who are very close to Sokoto, like the people of Maradun have relocated there.”
The attackers also destroyed large storages of farm produce, the villagers had kept hidden after the last spate of attacks.
Meanwhile, the state police command spokesperson, Shehu Mohammed when contacted said the command is currently “making efforts toward bringing the culprits to book”.
“The command is leaving no stone unturned toward arresting the situation,” he said. “Police have been deployed to not only those places (attacked) but to all other places that are affected.”
Despite huge deployment of troops and police officers, the state has witnessed sporadic attacks from bandits that have led to the death of hundreds in recent months.
A seemingly helpless Mr Yari last week asked President Muhammadu Buhari to declare a state of emergency in Zamfara due to the killings.
Source: PREMIUM TIMES
