The death toll from a daylight attack by suspected bandits on farmlands in Sauna District, Talata Mafara Local Government Area of Zamfara State, has risen to 23, community sources confirmed on Thursday.
Earlier reports put the number of those killed at 16. According to fresh accounts from Sauna District, the figure increased after more bodies were recovered from the farms.
Residents said the victims were attacked while working on their farmlands on Thursday morning.
An indigene of the area who wanted to remain anonymous for security reasons said the bandits, who arrived on multiple motorcycles, opened fire indiscriminately on anyone found in the fields.
Immediately after they arrived at the farmlands, they opened fire indiscriminately, killing all the farmers working there.
“The assailants came in groups and shot at farmers without warning.”
He added that the remains of all 23 victims were buried in a mass burial at the palace of the district head in Sauna.
According to him, the burial was conducted earlier on Thursday.
At the time of filing this report, the security authorities had not released an official statement on the incident.
Efforts of the press to reach the spokesperson for the state Police Command, DSP Yazid Abubakar, proved abortive, as his phone number could not be reached.
Meanwhile, the people of Sauna District and other parts of the state have been experiencing repeated attacks on farming communities in recent years, with residents often targeted while working on their farms.