No fewer than 30 persons were killed in Plateau State in the early hours of Wednesday by gunmen who attacked Kwahaslalek village, Mangu Local Government Area of the state.
It was gathered that the victims, who were mostly women and children, had run to the house of a community leader in the area on Tuesday night for safety following an 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 toll to newsmen Online in Jos, the state capital, on Wednesday.
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.”
The Chairman of Mwaghavul Development Association, Joseph Gwankat, also confirmed the killing, describing it as callous.
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 spokesman for the state police command, Alabo Alfred, said he had yet to get the report of the incident when contacted.
The Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang, declared a 24-hour curfew on the Mangu LGA on Tuesday.
He said the decision followed the deteriorating security situation in the area after unrest left several houses, including churches and mosques, burnt down.
