No fewer than five worshippers were killed and several others abducted on Friday morning when armed bandits stormed a mosque in Yandoto village, Tsafe Local Government Area of Zamfara State, during early morning prayers.
Residents said the gunmen invaded the mosque while prayers were ongoing and opened fire indiscriminately, killing five people instantly and injuring many more.
According to a resident, the bandits came around dawn and started shooting at people praying.
The assailants were said to have also abducted an unspecified number of worshippers before retreating into the surrounding forests.
When contacted, the Zamfara State Police Command spokesperson, DSP Yazid Abubakar, said he had not yet been briefed on the incident by the Divisional Police Officer in charge of the area.
The attack is the latest in a series of assaults targeting places of worship in Tsafe LGA. Barely a week ago, gunmen stormed Gidan Turbe village, also in Tsafe, abducting about 40 worshippers during dawn prayers.
Meanwhile, in a separate tragedy in the state, over 100 illegal miners are feared dead after a gold pit collapsed on Thursday in Kadauri village, Maru LGA. Witnesses said the pit caved in, trapping scores of miners.
Efforts to rescue those buried reportedly led to more casualties, as some of the rescuers suffocated in the process. At least eight bodies have so far been recovered and returned to their community in Mekwanugga village for burial.
Both incidents underscore the deepening security and safety challenges in Zamfara, where armed violence and economic desperation continue to take a heavy toll on rural communities.
