Gunmen have attacked a mosque in the state of Katsina in northwestern Nigeria, killing a dozen people and abducting several others, local residents told media.
According to witnesses, unidentified attackers arrived at the Maigamji mosque on motorbikes Saturday night and fired randomly at worshipers, forcing them to flee. Approximately 12 people who were attending night prayers were reportedly killed, including an imam.
"They then gathered many people and took them to the bush. I'm praying that the bandits release the innocent people they abducted," one local said.
A Katsina state police spokesman confirmed the attack, saying that state-backed vigilantes with support of locals had managed to save some of the worshippers from the assailants.
Northwestern states in Nigeria have long been suffering from armed criminal gangs that occasionally attack communities in the region, killing people or kidnapping them for ransom. Some armed gangs also demand that villagers pay for their protection and safety to be allowed to peacefully pursue their livelihoods, like farming and harvesting crops.
Armed groups raid schools, mosques, churches, and markets, as well as voting sites. In particular, the continued attacks have raised concerns over voters' safety during the country’s presidential, parliamentary, and state elections that are scheduled to be held in February 2023.
According to Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission, the latest attack on a voting site occurred this week in southeastern Nigeria, when three construction workers were kidnapped at an election site, but were later freed.