Suspected Boko Haram militants kill 10, abduct 160 in north-central Nigeria

By Timothy Olanrewaju

ABUJA, Nigeria (AA) - Armed men suspected to be from the Boko Haram militant group killed 10 people and abducted around 160 others in an attack on a community in north-central Nigeria, residents and security sources said Monday.

Scores of the suspected terrorists rode on motorcycles to Kuchi village in the Munya Local Government Area of Niger State late Friday, said Sahid Abubakar, a resident of Minna, the state capital, who hails from the community.

"They invaded our community in about an hour-long attack. They killed 10 people, mostly men, and kidnapped about 160 from the report I got from my family members," he told Anadolu by phone.

He said the gunmen also looted local shops, houses and carted away foodstuffs and livestock.

A security source said most of the abducted are women and children, especially girls.

The military and police are yet to make official comments on the incident, one in a series of violent attacks by terrorists, bandits and armed gangs in Africa's largest nation.

Nigeria has been struggling to end over a decade of terrorist attacks which have led to the killing of over 100,000 people and the displacement of 3.5 million from their homes.

On Friday, Babagana Zulum, the governor of Borno State, a hotspot of Boko Haram attacks, expressed concern over the protracted terrorist activities in the region and the delay in the resettlement of the remaining 1.3 million displaced persons still in internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugee camps, including in neighboring Niger and Chad.