Teaching Comparative Government and Politics

Friday, May 03, 2019

Terrorists in northern Nigeria strike again

Terrorists hit another area of northern Nigeria.

Gunmen kill 14 villagers in northern Nigeria

Dozens of gunmen attacked two villages in Katsina state, north-western Nigeria and killed 14 villagers, a politician and local police say.

The politician, who represents the area in the state's parliament, Abdul Jalal Haruna Runka, told the BBC the attackers on motorbikes went on the rampage in the villages on Tuesday evening shooting people and burning houses.

Many people were also injured in Gobirawa and Sabawa villages.

This is the second time in a week that gunmen attacked the area killing several people and injuring others.

There's growing concern in northern Nigeria over the level of banditry and kidnapping in the states of Zamfara, Katsina and Kaduna.

The states have long faced problems with armed groups stealing cattle, kidnapping for ransom and attacking communities, which has in turn prompted some local people to form vigilante gangs.

The Nigerian government has deployed troops to the region but that has yet to bring the violence to an end.

Buhari's relative kidnapped in Nigeria

Police say gunmen have kidnapped a traditional ruler in Daura who is distantly related to Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari.

Musa Umar was seized on Wednesday evening from in front of his house by abductors who fired shots into the air, Katsina state Police Spokesman Gambo Isa told the BBC's Nasidi Adamu Yahya.

Local police say one officer who was injured in a confrontation with the kidnappers is receiving treatment at a local hospital.

Mr Umar is a distant relative by marriage of President Buhari, as well as being the father-in-law of one of his senior aides. Daura is the president's home town.

The BBC's Joshua Ajayi in Lagos says the kidnapping is an embarrassment to the president, as it shows that just about anyone can be abducted.

The president's office has not yet commented on the incident.

Kidnappings, often for ransom, are on the rise in north-western Nigeria.

On Tuesday, dozens of gunmen attacked two villages in the same state and killed 14 people.

The Nigerian government has repeatedly claimed it is tackling the problem by deploying troops to the region but that has yet to bring the violence to an end.

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