At least, 30 people were killed in another attack by gunmen on Kwahaslalek village in Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau state according to local sources.
The victims, mostly women and children, were seeking refuge in a community leader’s house following a riot that broke out in Mangu town earlier that day. Several houses, churches and mosques were reportedly burnt down.
Confirming the death toll to PUNCH Online, a community leader in the area, Mark Haruna said the gunmen surrounded the house and opened fire on the villagers on Tuesday night, January 22.
He said;“What happened at Sabon Gari and Mangu town yesterday afternoon (Tuesday) was just a distraction so that the attention of the people will be shifted away from the villages.
“For the second time, my village Kwahaslalek (behind NYSC camp) came under attack by gunmen yesterday (Tuesday) night. They came at about 12:30 am and killed over 25 people, mostly women and children.”
Joseph Gwankat, the Chairman of Mwaghavul Development Association also confirmed the killing, describing it as “callous.”
He said he could not sleep on Tuesday night because of the unrest in Mangu town, and was shocked to learn that Kwahaslalek village was attacked.
“From what I was told, the unrest in Mangu town yesterday created fears in many communities. Some people in the village went and evacuated their loved ones and assembled them in a place where they thought was safe,” he said.
“So in the night, the killers went to Kwahaslalek village where the people, mostly women and children, were assembled and killed all of them.”
“I was told that no security was on the ground to save the villagers. This act is pure wickedness. How can people who are in their villages be targets of constant attacks and killings without anything being done to stop the perpetrators?” he said.
Meanwhile, the Plateau Police Spokesman, Alabo Alfred, said he had not received any report of the incident when contacted.
“I have not received any report on that. Let me call my Commander. We will investigate the incident if something like that happened,” he said.
Following the deteriorating security situation in the area, The Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang declared a 24-hour curfew on Mangu LGA on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the state is yet to recover from the Christmas eve attacks on several communities in three local government areas.
Gunmen had stormed Ndun, Ngyong, Murfet, Makundary, Tamiso, Chiang, Tahore, Gawarba, Dares, Meyenga, Darwat, and Butura Kampani villages in the Barkin Ladi, Mangu and Bokkos areas of the state, burning houses and killing over 150 villagers.
The motive and identity of the attackers are still unknown.
