A convoy of pro-government fighters was returning from a funeral when they came under fire from bandits in Katsina state.
At least 21 government-backed fighters were killed in an ambush by bandits in North West Katsina State in Nigeriaaccording to the authorities.
Katsina police spokesman Abubakar Sadiq Aliyu told the AFP news agency on Saturday that a convoy of pro-government fighters was returning from a condolence visit to the family of a slain colleague when it came under fire from bandits in Baure village, Safana district.
“Unfortunately, 21 people were fatally shot as a result of the attack,” Aliyu said, adding that the police were trying to “ensure the arrest of the perpetrators” of Tuesday’s attack.
Witnesses, however, told Nigeria’s Premium Times that as many as 25 people were killed in the attack, while many more villagers are missing.
Nigeria’s The Guardian reported that the fighters were members of the state-backed Katsina Community Watch Corps (KCWC).
The newspaper also quoted Aliyu as saying that the police had been deployed to the area of the attack to help restore order.
Katsina is one of several states in northwestern and central Nigeria plagued by bandits who raid villages, kill and kidnap residents, and burn and loot homes.
In June 2024, at least seven people were killed and 100 kidnapped when gunmen attacked a rural community in the state.
The gangs, which hold camps in the vast forest between Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna and Niger states, have become notorious for mass abductions of students from schools in recent years.
The Nigerian group Boko Haram also carried out attacks and kidnappings in the country.
In 2023, Katsina State Governor Dikko Umar Radda established a KCWC force consisting of about 2,000 men to assist the military and police in the fight against gangs.
