The death toll from armed gang attacks in the Woro and Noku districts of Nigeria’s western Kwara State has risen to 170 on Thursday, according to lawmaker Saidu Ahmed on Wednesday.
“According to the information we have, the death toll has risen to 170,” state council member Saidu Baba Ahmed told Anadolu Agency.
“As I am speaking to you now, I am in the village along with military personnel, sorting dead bodies and combing the surrounding areas for more,” Mr Ahmed stated.
The lawmaker further described the attack as the deadliest in recent times, adding several people were still missing as of Wednesday morning.
In response to the escalating violence, Kwara State Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq announced that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the immediate deployment of an army battalion to the state as part of “Operation Savannah Shield.”
The attacks began on Wednesday, when State Senator Saliu Mustapha first reported that an armed group had launched assaults on the Woro and Noku districts, resulting in an initial death toll of 40 people.
Nigeria has long battled violence from armed gangs, often referred to locally as “bandits,” in addition to insurgencies by Boko Haram and the Islamic State’s West Africa Province (ISWAP)
