Scores killed, houses burnt as gunmen attack Zamfara village

Gunmen invaded Kuryar Madaro community of Kauran Namoda Local Government Area of Zamfara State on Tuesday killing scores of villagers and set many vehicles and houses on fire.

Residents in the area told the BBC that the gunmen stormed the community around 10pm and spent hours on the rampage.

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A villager said 19 dead bodies were counted.

The assailants were also said to have looted foodstuffs and animals. The Zamfara State Police Command confirmed the attack. The command said it had dispatched its personnel to the community.

Kuryar Madaro is one of the areas in Zamfara State that had witnessed telecom service blackout.

People from the area, who travelled to Gusau, the state capital, where telecom was restored, told the BBC that the gunmen set 13 houses on fire and burnt 16 vehicles including one belonging to the police.

“They looted foodstuffs from provision stores and set the shops on fire,” a resident said.

It is over a month since telecom services were shut down in the state in an attempt to fight the bandits who had been reigning terror in the state before the subsequent restoration of telecom service in Gusau last week.