Bandits on Motorcycles Kill Dozens in Taraba Village Raid
Police initially reported ten deaths, but residents and Amnesty International say the toll has risen to 40 after armed men looted the community.
By Hiroshi Ferrari ·
Residents of Binnari village in Taraba State woke to the aftermath of a motorcycle raid that has left dozens dead and the local economy disrupted. Armed men attacked the community just after Friday prayers, leaving a trail of casualties and looted goods that has strained local authorities and international observers.
Police confirmed that ten bodies were recovered by Friday evening. However, the number of fatalities has climbed sharply since then. Amnesty International reported on Saturday that the death toll had reached 40, noting that additional bodies were found late in the day. Survivors provided lower but still substantial estimates to the AFP news agency. Sa'idu Nuhu, a Binnari resident, stated that more than 20 bodies were counted after the attackers left, with several people still missing. Isiyaku Musa, another resident, also placed the toll at no fewer than 20.
The assault was carried out by a large group of gunmen riding approximately 50 motorcycles, with two men per vehicle. Malam Abubakar Saifullahi, a community leader, described the systematic nature of the raid. The attackers looted shops, seizing cash, foodstuffs, and other provisions. They also took motorcycles abandoned by villagers who fled the scene. The timing of the attack, immediately following Friday prayers, caught many residents off guard in the open.
Banditry has become a persistent security challenge in northwest and central Nigeria. These groups often lack a specific ideology, instead operating to kidnap victims for ransom and levy taxes on farmers and miners in rural areas where the state presence is weak. Taraba, located in the central-eastern region, has increasingly fallen under the threat of these armed gangs, which clash with overstretched police and military forces in hard-to-reach areas.
Amnesty International criticized the Nigerian government for leaving rural communities vulnerable to repeated atrocities. The organization said authorities continue to allow gunmen to act with impunity in parts of the north. This incident occurs against a backdrop of ongoing conflict in the country. The Nigerian military announced on the same Saturday that it had killed 15 terrorists in an air strike in the northeastern state of Borno, continuing its long-running fight against armed rebellion that began with the Boko Haram uprising in 2009.
