Gunmen kill over 20 villagers in northern Nigeria

The death toll from Sunday's violence against the villages of Malagum 1 and Sakwong in the Kaura district rose to 28 or 37, according to sources.

Criminal gangs have been attacking villages in the northwest and central parts of the country for years, stealing livestock, kidnapping people for ransom, looting food and burning down homes.

Atuk Stephen, a Kaura district official, told a local television station that 37 people had been killed by bandits who had burned more than 100 homes and several vehicles.

Other local sources put the death toll at 28, according to Africa News.

The Kaduna State Commissioner for Internal Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, confirmed that several people were killed in the attacks, but did not give a definite death toll. He added that the army had deployed to the area to hunt down the attackers.

Kaduna is one of the states most affected by "bandits" in northern Nigeria.

MP/PR