A yet unknown number of people have been killed in Woro, a remote community in Kaiama Local Government Area of Kwara State, by suspected Boko Haram terrorists during an attack that lasted several hours.
A Kwara government official said 75 people have been confirmed dead. But residents say the casualty could be much higher.
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The assault came weeks after the group reportedly sent a letter to the district head of Woro, Salihu Umar, notifying him of their intention to visit the community for [radical] preaching, residents and local leaders told PREMIUM TIMES.
Woro is located on the fringes of Kainji National Park, a vast forest reserve covering about 5,341 square kilometres. The area has increasingly become a hideout for armed groups, including Boko Haram and Ansaru—locally known as Mamuda.
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While Ansaru has operated in the area since around 2020, Boko Haram fighters moved into the forest in July last year, PREMIUM TIMES learnt.
Our reporter spoke with multiple residents of Woro and a community leader in Kaiama to piece together details of the attack.
The residents spoke from hiding.
A night of terror
The attack began around 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday and continued into the early hours of Wednesday, residents said. The terrorists stormed the village, opening fire, setting houses ablaze, and abducting an unspecified number of women and children.
Reuters earlier quoted a local politician, Sa’idu Ahmed, as estimating the death toll at 40, noting that more bodies were likely to be found.
By Wednesday evening, however, the figure had risen sharply.
A resident who spoke to PREMIUM TIMES from hiding said a search-and-rescue team, escorted by military personnel and forest guards, counted at least 170 bodies.
“They counted 170 this afternoon,” the resident said, requesting anonymity for security reasons.
This newspaper has been unable to independently verify that claim.
Among those killed was Salihu Ibrahim, a former students’ union leader of the Kwara State College of Nursing, Ilorin.
Homes razed, district head missing
Another resident who fled to a nearby forest said the attackers razed houses and shops, including the palace of the district head, Mr Umar.
The district head, like several other villagers, remains missing.
“They also stole his Jeep (car),” the source said. “They used it to transport some of the kidnapped victims into the forest.”
Many residents, he added, were still taking refuge in nearby bushes as of Wednesday.
“We have been in the bush since yesterday. The gunfire continued until this morning,” he said.
Authorities silent, military mobilised
The Kwara State police spokesperson, Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi, did not respond to PREMIUM TIMES’ enquiries.
Like Ms Ejire-Adeyemi, Army spokesperson, Appolonia Anele, did not respond to a message sent to her.
However, Al Jazeera reported that Ms Ejire-Adeyemi confirmed the attack and said military operatives had been deployed to the area, although she did not provide casualty figures.
The letter before the massacre
A community leader in Kaiama, who requested anonymity because he was not authorised to speak publicly, said the attackers had written to the district head of Woro months earlier.
The letter, he said, informed the district head of the group’s intention to “come and preach” in the community.
According to the leader, who is also a member of the Kwara State Emirate Council, the district head forwarded the letter to the council in Ilorin, which subsequently requested the deployment of soldiers to Woro.
A team of soldiers was sent, he said, but withdrew later when no attack occurred.
Instead, the fighters reportedly moved to Baburasa, a neighbouring community about 20 kilometres from Woro.
“They went to Baburasa and preached to the people there about three weeks ago,” the community leader said. “They even mentioned communities they planned to attack, but they did not mention Woro.”
READ ALSO: ANALYSIS: How Boko Haram gathers intelligence for its deadly activities
The leader believes the group attacked Woro because the district head alerted authorities after receiving the letter.
“As of now, we do not know the whereabouts of the district head,” he said.
A widening threat
The Woro attack comes barely a month after Boko Haram fighters under the command of Mallam Sadiku attacked Kasuwan Daji in neighbouring Niger State, killing more than 30 people and abducting women and children.
The same faction was also responsible for the abduction of over 300 students from St Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri, Niger State.
The Sadiku faction of Boko Haram has operated in the Alawa forest reserve from where it attacked neighbouring villages like Alawa, Basa and Kurebe, among others. Although the group has moved to the Kainji axis, it left behind a humanitarian crisis.
Sources, including ex-members of the group, told this reporter that the group left its former stronghold due to sustained military aerial bombardment and infighting with Dogo Gide, a notorious bandit leader Mallam Sadiku had collaborated with to stage violent attacks in the North-west and North-central.
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