The death toll from Tuesday’s attack on a mosque in Katsina State, northern Nigeria, has risen to at least 50, according to media reports released on Wednesday.
Approximately 60 individuals were taken hostage by the assailants and transported to an undisclosed location, as reported by Reuters. Earlier reports from a local political official had indicated that at least 30 people had died. The attack took place in the remote village of Unguwan Mantau, located within the Malumfashi district.
A spokesperson for the Katsina State police confirmed that law enforcement agencies successfully prevented attacks on two additional villages. For several years, criminal gangs—known locally as “bandits”—have escalated their assaults in northwestern and central Nigeria, pillaging villages, kidnapping residents for ransom, and setting homes ablaze.
