While residents were awaiting for the sunset prayer to break their fast, bandits stormed Dutsin Dan Ajiya in Anka area of Zamfara State, killed 41 residents and the abducted an unknown number of persons on Thursday.
The bandits also burnt down houses and food silos.
Local authorities and residents told 21st CENTURY CHRONICLE that the bandits circled the community and set houses on fire.
“We were sitting outside the mosque when some of them (bandits) drove into the community while others stayed outside to block exits and entries. We started running for our lives while the bandits shot at people,” a resident of the community who asked not to be named said. “They started putting fire on houses while waiting for people to come out.”
The local source, who spoke from Barayar Zaki village following the killing in his community, said most of those abducted were women and children while those killed were mostly men.
The member representing Bukkuyum in the state House of Assembly, Hamisu Faru, said the bandits were from the infamous Gando forest.
“They were from the Gando forest. They rode from Gando forest, crossed Gadar Manya and crossed over the Barayar Zaki river into Dutsin Dan Ajiya and massacred people,” the lawmaker said. Anka shares boundaries with Bukkuyum area.
21 Century Chronicles gathered that the Chairman of Anka, Bashar Musa and Sarkin Zamfara Anka, Attahiru Ahmad attended the funeral prayers for the slain victims on Friday.
The police spokesman in the state Yazid Abubakar didn’t respond to SMS sent to him over the attack.
