Gunmen believed to be cattle thieves killed 15 herdsmen in attacks on a Zamfara State village yesterday, the police said.
“Armed bandits attacked Bawon-Daji village and killed 15 people,” Zamfara State police spokesman Muhammad Shehu was quoted a saying by French News Agency, AFP.
A senior local government official, Gado Anka, narrated how 12 had died in the initial attack before the second one that also left many injured..
Anka told AFP that motorcycle-riding gunmen stormed the remote village in Anka district around 13:00 (1200GMT), shooting dead 12 residents before fleeing to a hideout in the bush.
“They returned two hours later and attacked mourners during the funeral of the victims in the cemetery, killing three more and injuring several others,” he said.
Rural communities in the agrarian state are under siege from gangs who kill, loot and torching.
This has prompted villages to form vigilante groups – which in turn are often accused of extra-judicial killings of suspected cattle thieves, prompting deadly reprisals by the gangs.
It was not clear if the latest killings were as a result of reprisals.
In February, dozens of people were killed when gunmen opened fire on traders and villagers at Birane, in the Zurmi area of the state.
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