Bandits have attacked Damala village in the Woko district of Borgu Local Government Area of Niger State, killing at least four people.
The attack occurred in the early hours of Saturday, January 10, barely a week after gunmen killed 42 residents across several communities, including the Kasuwan Daji market in Demo village, within Borgu and neighbouring Agwara Local Government Areas.
The Niger State Police Command confirmed the latest incident to Channels Television on Sunday.
In a statement, the Command’s Public Relations Officer, Wasiu Abiodun, said the assailants invaded the village, made away with an unspecified number of cattle, and killed four residents during the raid.
He added that the attackers also set several shops on fire before escaping from the area.
Abiodun, a Superintendent of Police, disclosed that security agencies responded swiftly to the incident and have since visited the affected community.
According to him, a clearance operation is currently underway, while security surveillance has been strengthened to forestall further attacks and protect residents.
The police spokesperson assured members of the public that sustained efforts are ongoing to track down the perpetrators and restore peace in the area.
Bandits have continued to carry out mass kidnappings for ransom and attacks on rural communities across Nigeria’s North-Central and North-West regions.
Niger State has remained one of the most affected in recent months, alongside Kaduna, Benue, Plateau, Kebbi and Zamfara states.
In November, armed groups abducted more than 250 students and staff from a Catholic school in Niger State.
Authorities later announced that the victims were released in two batches weeks later, without disclosing whether any ransom was paid.
The most recent attack occurred less than 20 kilometres (12 miles) from Papiri village, where the students and teachers were abducted from their school.
The local Catholic Church placed the death toll from Saturday’s raid at more than 40, higher than the figure provided by the police.
“Reports indicate the bandits operated for hours with no security presence,” the Catholic Church in Kontagora stated on its Facebook page.
Nigeria’s Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, said that during the attack on Kasuwan Daji market, “the bullets” did not “choose victims based on religion.”
“Those killed and those abducted — were traders, farmers, parents, schoolchildren from both Muslim and Christian backgrounds,” he said in a statement.
Nigeria’s security forces continue to face significant strain due to multiple security challenges across the country.
Africa’s most populous nation is grappling with overlapping conflicts linked to a prolonged jihadist insurgency, banditry, farmer-herder clashes and separatist violence in the southeast, affecting both Christians and Muslims.
On Christmas Eve, a suspected suicide bomber killed at least five people in an attack on a mosque in northeastern Borno State.
In recent months, Washington has criticised Nigeria’s inability to curb the violence, with US President Donald Trump describing the situation as “persecution” of Christians — a narrative often promoted by religious groups in the United States.
Despite the Nigerian government and independent analysts disputing these claims, the United States carried out surprise airstrikes on Christmas Day against militants linked to the Islamic State group.
The Nigerian government later said it approved the airstrikes.
President Bola Tinubu, in December, pledged a major overhaul of national security and increased defence spending in the 2026 budget. Earlier that month, he replaced the defence minister, appointing a former senior military commander to the position.
