Abuja, Oct 26 (IANS) At least 58 bodies have been recovered after unknown gunmen attacked a community in Nigeria’s northeastern Taraba State, police have said, as rescue operations continued.
Victor Mshelizah, spokesman for the Taraba State police command, told Xinhua news agency by telephone on Sunday (local time) that the death toll from the attack, which occurred Friday in the Binnari community of Karim-Lamido Local Government Area, rose to 58 after 15 bodies of victims who fled the scene were recovered Sunday.
The police official said bodies were recovered from surrounding bushes and a river following the attack, which occurred on the community’s weekly market day.
An overloaded canoe carrying victims to a nearby community capsized midway, he said, adding that more victims were still feared missing.
According to local media reports, more than 40 bodies were initially recovered by security personnel. The gunmen indiscriminately opened fire on people during the four-hour attack, leaving many houses burned and families displaced.
In a statement, the Taraba State government said it had begun distributing relief materials to assist rescued victims and affected families.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack in the state, which has experienced deadly violence in recent years linked to communal clashes, banditry and ethno-religious tensions.
Earlier this month, at least 22 people, including four security personnel, were killed after suspected terrorists ambushed a convoy of civilians travelling under security escort in Nigeria’s northwestern Zamfara State.
Hamisu Faru, a lawmaker in Zamfara State, told local media that the attack occurred in the early hours of October 11 near Gurusu village, along a route connecting to the Gwashi-Nasarawa road in Bukkuyum Local Government Area.
The victims were traders travelling in a convoy of vehicles to a weekly market in the area when the suspected terrorists attacked, Bashir Abubakar, a community leader, told Xinhua by telephone.
A military spokesperson confirmed that four security personnel accompanying the convoy were killed in the attack.
–IANS
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