Security Operatives Rescue 30 Of The 40 Worshipers Abducted In Katsina Mosque-Police
LAGOS MAY 10TH (NEWSRANGERS)-Nigeria security operatives were reported to have rescued thirty of the forty worshippers alleged to have been abducted by gunmen from a mosque in Nigeria’s northwestern border with Niger, the police disclosed.
Northwest and central Nigeria have increasingly become a hub for criminal gangs known locally as bandits who raid villages, killing or abducting residents for ransom.
The gunmen stormed the mosque around 0100 GMT in the town of Jibiya in Katsina state, where 47 people were observing an overnight vigil during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, state police spokesman Gambo Isa said.
“The bandits kidnapped 40 worshippers from the mosque and herded them into the bush,” Isa said.
“They were however pursued by a team of policemen with the assistance of local vigilantes and residents who succeeded in rescuing 30 of the hostages.”
He said the bandits were able to escape with 10 worshippers.
Muslims observe night-long vigil in the last 10 days of Ramadan where they throng mosques for prayers. Kidnapping attacks on mosques in Nigeria are rare.
The kidnappers were believed to have come from Dumburum forest in neighbouring Zamfara state where they maintain camps, Isa said.
Gangs keep base camps in Rugu forest which straddles Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna and Niger states.
Criminal gangs are driven by financial motives and have no known ideological leanings. But security experts say there is growing concern they are being infiltrated by jihadists waging a 12-year old insurrection in Nigeria’s northeast.
AFP
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Posted by News Rangers
on May 10 2021. Filed under National.
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