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Gunmen stormed a market and soccer field in a rural town in central Nigeria over the weekend, killing at least 27 people and injuring others, state police said on Tuesday. .
Benue State Police were still investigating the attack, but Benue is part of the Middle Belt region where communal clashes are frequent between nomadic pastoralists and local farmers over land, grazing and land. ‘water.
The attack hit the Agatu area at around 6:00 p.m. (5:00 p.m. GMT) on Sunday as locals closed the market after the trade, a spokeswoman for Benue State Police said.
She said investigations were underway into the motives for the attack.
Heavily armed criminal gangs in northwest and central Nigeria also often loot villages, steal livestock and kidnap for ransom.
Last week, at least 88 people were killed when gunmen on motorcycles attacked seven villages in Danko-Wasagu district, northwestern Kebbi state.
This year, gangs in the northwest have stepped up their attacks on schools and colleges, kidnapping hundreds of students to demand ransoms from authorities and parents.
The attacks in northwest and central Nigeria are just part of the challenge facing President Muhammadu Buhari’s security forces who have been locked in a war with jihadists in the country’s northeast for over ‘a decade.
str / pma / ri
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