23 people killed, 70 houses razed as gunmen attack 3 Kaduna communities

No less than 23 people were reportedly killed on the night of Sunday, March 20, 2022, when gunmen attacked Mararaban Agban, Agban and Adan communities in the Kaura LGA of Kaduna state.

Several people were also injured as the invaders set about 70 houses on fire.

A witness said the gunmen divided themselves into three groups and attacked the three communities with machine guns, TheCable reports.

“They came around 7 pm and they divided themselves into three groups. One group attacked Mararaban Agban, the second group attacked Agban and the third group attacked Adan.

“They mounted their machine guns and started unleashing mayhem on the villagers.” the witness said.

He added that when he visited the villages on Monday, he counted 23 three corpses including those who died in the hospital as a result of injuries they sustained from gunshots.

“I just visited the three affected communities this morning– Mararaban Agban, Agban and Adan. They are neighbouring villages.

“I can say that I counted 23 corpses including three of the victims who died in the hospital of wounds from gunshots. I also counted about 70 houses that were burnt,” the witness said.

He further said, “In Agban half of the houses were burnt. In Mararaban Agban, a few houses were burnt. One woman was macheted, all in all, I counted 14 corpses in Mararaban Agban, three of the corpses were still on fire. I saw six dead bodies, including a woman and her three children.

“At Adan I did not see a dead body, but that is not to say no life was lost because I didn’t enter the bushes around the community.”

He added that the gunmen had attempted to invade the communities last week but were repelled.

“Yesterday, they came in their numbers, well-armed, well-coordinated and wreaked havoc on the villagers,” he said.

Meanwhile, following the incident, Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State has imposed a 24-hour curfew on Jema’a and Kaura Local Government Areas of the state.

In a statement on Monday, March 21, 2022, the State Commissioner of Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, said the measure was put in place to allow security agencies to save lives and property and restore law and order in the areas.

The state government also appealed to residents of the area to corporate with security agencies with “the urgent” task of restoring peace, law and order.