K
KEY POINTS
- Gunmen abducted worshippers from Kpenya Mosque in Niger State during Friday prayers.
- Police said no deaths were recorded and launched a joint rescue operation.
- Residents claimed more than 60 people were abducted in coordinated attacks, but the figure remains unverified.
Gunmen have abducted several worshippers after storming a mosque in Borgu Local Government Area of Niger State, north-central Nigeria.
The attack occurred at about 2 p.m. on Friday at Kpenya Mosque in the Dekara area of the local government, according to the Niger State Police Command.
Police spokesperson Wasiu Abiodun said the attackers first raided the nearby communities of Gidan-Zana and Kpenya before moving to the mosque, where worshippers had gathered for Friday prayers.
Abiodun said no death had been officially recorded in the attack.
He added that a joint team of security personnel had been deployed to the affected communities to assess the situation, track the kidnappers and begin efforts to rescue the abducted worshippers.
The police spokesperson, however, said the command had yet to establish the exact number of people taken hostage.
Residents Report Mass Abduction
The account from residents suggests that the scale of the attack could be significantly larger than the initial police report.
According to locals who spoke to Reuters, more than 60 people may have been abducted during what they described as coordinated attacks on several communities in Borgu.
Residents said gunmen simultaneously invaded Dekara and three other communities while residents were attending Friday prayers.
The reported figure has not been independently verified by Reuters, and authorities have not confirmed that more than 60 people were abducted.
The incident adds to growing concerns over mass kidnappings in parts of north-western and north-central Nigeria.
Armed criminal groups, commonly referred to as bandits, have increasingly targeted rural communities, religious gatherings, schools, major roads and other vulnerable locations, often abducting residents for ransom.
The latest attack has renewed calls for stronger security operations in remote communities, particularly areas where residents have limited access to rapid security intervention.
Authorities are expected to continue efforts to determine the number of victims and locate those abducted, while security agencies intensify operations against the attackers.