Dozens killed in Kaduna attack

A local official said 38 people mostly women and children were killed. But the police said only 18 people were killed in the two villages – Kabamu – Karshi and Nandu all in Sanga Local Government Area.Describing the attack, a witness in Fadan Karshi said: “They came to our area with dangerous weapons shooting and […]

A local official said 38 people mostly women and children were killed.

But the police said only 18 people were killed in the two villages – Kabamu – Karshi and Nandu all in Sanga Local Government Area.
Describing the attack, a witness in Fadan Karshi said: “They came to our area with dangerous weapons shooting and setting our houses ablaze.
“Last weekend, some couples who went to farm were also killed. We were able to kill one of the attackers and arrested one other person. The assailants were suspected to be Fulani by tribe.”  
 Sanga Local Government Chairman Emmanuel Adamu who visited the area said the attacks started at about 10pm on Monday and lasted up to the early hours of yesterday.
 “The attack lasted for several hours claiming the lives of 21 people at Kabamu village and 17 at Ankpong villages,” Adamu said.
He called on the people to remain calm as security measures were being put in place to forestall recurrence.
Secretary of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders’ Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) in Sanga Musa Abdullahi Badembo told Daily Trust that “Fulani people were attacked and their houses burnt at Badun, Fadan Karshi and Gwantu town as act of vengeance.”
 He said livestock belonging to Fulani people were killed while undisclosed number of cattle was stolen. “People were not attacked in Tari, Ayu chiefdom but cattle belonging Fulanis were killed.”
However few hours after the incident, Fulani hamlets around Badun and Fadan Karshi were torched while undisclosed number of people were said to have been killed in an apparent reprisal attack.
Witnesses said residents of Gwantu fled their homes to neighbouring villages of Nunku and Andaha in Nasarawa State when news spread that there was going to be attack on the town.
 A witness who spoke on telephone said: “We had to flee because despite what happened Monday night there was no security presence. Some youth groups had mounted road blocks in some parts of Gwantu, and they burnt my brother’s car. We had to flee for our lives,” he said.
Police spokesman, Superintendent Aminu Lawan, confirmed the earlier attacks and said police have arrested  some people suspected to be the masterminds.
 He said the gunmen stormed Fadan Karshi around midnight before moving to Ankpong village in Nandu district in a coordinated manner.
 The police, he said, are searching the area.  “It was assumed that those who attacked Fadan Karshi were also behind the second attack in Nandu.”
Lawan said about 18 people were killed in Monday’s attacks but that normalcy had returned to the areas yesterday evening.    
Meanwhile, Governor of Kaduna State Mukhtar Ramalan Yero condemned the attack describing the act as a “provocative attempt by some unpatriotic people to cause confusion and unrest.”
In a statement by his Director General Media and Publicity, Ahmed Maiyaki, the Governor condoled with families of victims and said the incidents are being investigated.
“We call on people in Fadan Karshi and other parts of the state to remain calm as security forces have already been deployed in the area to maintain law and order.
“We should remain united and resolute in resisting obvious attempts by agents of darkness to create confusion and sow seeds of discord in our State.”
As at the time of filing this report, villagers were relocating to unknown destinations for safety.
Reacting yesterday, Concerned Realists of Southern Kaduna, in a statement signed by its convener, Dr John Danfulani, said the security situation in Kaduna was fragile and called on the federal government to intervene.  
Meanwhile Chairman of MACBAN in Kaduna Alhaji Ahmadu Suleiman said the attacks were rather unfortunate and called for calm. He said the Fulanis should not be suspected of carrying out the act “since there was no evidence” and that attacking them as revenge is heartbreaking. “We condemned the attacks and pleaded for people to remain calm.”
It would be recalled that in May this year, two Fulani youths – Yusuf Idris and Yahuza Yusuf – were killed at Fadan Karshi in the Numana chiefdom of Kaduna State.
The deceased were on their way to a petrol station to refuel their motorcycle when a mob accosted and begun interrogating them over a previous attack on a police office in the area.
They were beaten to death and their bodies abandoned by the roadside. Police later retrieved the bodies and haven’t released them for burial since then.