In brief
Nigerian police repelled a bandit assault in Bukkuyum on Oct. 28, after which more than 30 bodies believed to be fleeing attackers were recovered. Security operations are ongoing to clear armed groups from the area, following earlier attacks that killed at least 50 people and led to abductions.
More than 30 bodies were recovered in Bukkuyum town, Zamfara State, after Nigerian police repelled a bandit attack on October 28, Xinhua reported Monday.
Yazid Abubakar, spokesperson for the Zamfara State police, said the police confronted suspected bandits in a gunfight that night, resulting in many of the attackers fleeing the scene with gunshot wounds.
On several days later, security operatives and residents found over 30 bodies scattered across farmlands, which police believe are those of the fleeing bandits because of the operative’s superior firepower.
"The corpses are believed to be those of the fleeing bandits due to the superior firepower of the security operatives," Abubakar said.
Police officials said they are continuing operations in Bukkuyum to dislodge armed groups that are active in the area.
The incident follows a February attack in which more than 150 armed men on motorcycles stormed a community in Bukkuyum, firing indiscriminately at residents and setting buildings ablaze, leaving at least 50 people dead and dozens of women and children abducted.
Banditry and kidnapping have been recurring problems in Nigeria’s northwest, with the recent assault adding to a series of violent incidents in the region.
