The grieving people of the Woro community in the Kaiama local government area of Kwara State have recovered the bodies of 78 victims of the attack launched on the rural community by armed bandits on Tuesday.
They performed the funeral prayer (janazah) on the corpses at about 6:30pm yesterday, shortly before the evening ( magrib) prayer.
The member representing Gwanabe/Gwaria constituency of Kaiama Local Government Area in the state House of Assembly, Hon. Saidu Baba Ahmed, who witnessed the funeral prayer, confirmed the development to LEADERSHIP last night.
He said the 78 corpses comprised 75 males and three females.
The lawmaker said the corpses were given mass burial in batches of 10, 15 and 20.
He also disclosed that 35 residents were abducted and whisked away into the bush by the armed bandits.
He added:” We have recovered 78 corpses – 75 males, three females. We performed janazah ( funeral prayer) on the corpses around 6:30pm. We have commenced burying the corpses in batches. Some were put together in groups of 10, 15, and 20 and given a mass burial.
“The information at my disposal indicated that the casualties are about 170. So, our people are still in the bush searching for more bodies. Thirty-five women were abducted. Survivors are also taking refuge in the bush. ”
Sources told LEADERSHIP that two children of the village head of the Woro community were among those who were killed by the bandits.
They added that the palace of the village head, residential buildings and shops were razed by the rampaging bandits.
A source said, “The casualties are over 40 as we speak, and soldiers and forest guards have taken over the two communities.”
But a community leader in Kaiama and former member of the state House of Assembly, Hon. Aliyu Mande, insisted that the casualty figure is more than 40.
“My brother, the casualty figure is more than 40. It’s about 86, and two children from the village were among the victims. One of the village’s head children, who was killed, just graduated from the School of Nursing in 2025.
” The bandits also burnt the village head’s palace, shops and residential buildings. We are indeed devastated. The loss of lives and property is huge and unimaginable,” Mande said.
A resident of the Woro community, Alh Usman Ibrahim Woro, put the casualty figure at 80.
LEADERSHIP reports that the armed bandits had around 5.30pm on Tuesday launched a deadly attack on Woro and Nuku communities in Kaiama local government area, killing 10 persons and burning houses.
The senior assistant to the governor on Security, Alh Muhideen Aliyu, confirmed the development to LEADERSHIP during a telephone conversation on Tuesday night.
A community leader in the area, Hon. Aliyu Mande, also confirmed the attack on the two communities, adding that 10 persons were killed as of Tuesday night.
Meanwhile, LEADERSHIP gathered that soldiers and forest guards have been deployed to Woro and Nuku communities to flush out the bandits.