Scores of people were reportedly killed or abducted when armed militants attacked communities in Nigeria’s central Niger state during Friday prayers, survivors and lawmakers said on Saturday.
The attack targeted Dikera village in the Borgu local government area, near Nigeria’s western border with Benin, with the nearby village of Binzi also coming under attack.
Survivor Jibril Ahmad said hundreds of fighters belonging to the militant group Lakurawa entered the area shortly after Friday prayers, carrying guns, knives and machetes.
“They slaughtered some of our people, saying we are not practicing the true teachings of Islam,” Ahmad told AFP.
Nigeria has battled jihadist violence for around 17 years, with militant groups increasingly using mass kidnappings alongside attacks on communities. Although the insurgency has historically been concentrated in the northeast, militant activity has expanded into other areas as armed groups operating across the neighbouring Sahel extend their reach.
Lakurawa remains a relatively little-known group, although some researchers have linked it to Islamic State Sahel Province, which operates across Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.
Survivors said some of those caught in Friday’s attack managed to escape after fighters from another militant group, Mahmuda, confronted the Lakurawa attackers.
“Many of us have escaped, while they were busy trying to confront” the Mahmuda fighters, Ahmad said.
Federal lawmaker Jafaru Mohammed said ideological differences between the two groups appeared to have triggered the clash, with Mahmuda fighters opposing Lakurawa’s actions and confronting them after learning of the attacks.