About 30 persons have been killed in Plateau State by gunmen who attacked Kwahaslalek village, Mangu Local Government Area of the state.
The incident happened in the early hours of Wednesday.
The victims, mostly women and children, had run to the house of a community leader in the area on Tuesday night for safety following earlier unrest during the day in Mangu town when the gunmen surrounded them and killed all of them
A community leader in the area, Mark Haruna, confirmed the death.
Haruna said, “What happened at Sabon Gari and Mangu town yesterday afternoon (Tuesday) was just a distraction so that the attention of the people will be shifted away from the villages.
“For the second time, my village Kwahaslalek (behind NYSC camp) came under attack by gunmen yesterday (Tuesday)night. They came at about 12:30 am and killed over 25 people, mostly women and children.”
Meanwhile, the Chairman of Mwaghavul Development Association, Joseph Gwankat, also confirmed the killing, describing it as callous.
“I couldn’t sleep last night as a result of what happened in Mangu town during the day yesterday. Now, I have just been told Kwahaslalek village was attacked last night and about 30 people were killed.
“From what I was told, the unrest in Mangu town yesterday created fears in many communities. Some people in the village went and evacuated their loved ones and assembled them in a place where they thought was safe.
“So in the night, the killers went to Kwahaslalek village where the people mostly women and children were assembled and killed all of them,” he said
The chairman who condemned the killing added, “I was told that no security was on ground to save the villagers. This act is pure wickedness. How can people who are in their villages be targets of constant attacks and killings without anything being done to stop the perpetrators?”
The Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang, had on Tuesday declared a 24-hour curfew on the Mangu LGA over the deteriorating security situation in the area, which included the burning of several houses, churches and mosques.
