Abuja, Nigeria: At least 62 people have been killed after gunmen attacked a community in northeastern Nigeria, the country's emergency agency said on Tuesday.
The attack, reportedly carried out by criminals known as bandits, took place on Friday in the Binnari community in the Karim-Lamido local government area of Taraba state. It also wounded 52 people and displaced thousands, according to Ladan Ayuba, the state head of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).
Attacks by bandits are common across northern Nigeria, where armed groups target civilians. Fifty-two bodies have been recovered so far, including 15 from the Benue River, NEMA officials said.
A Taraba police spokesperson said the death toll was not final, as more bodies were still being recovered. “We still have men on the ground, and the more we recover bodies, we will put them in account,” Victor Mshelizah told The Associated Press.
Amnesty International Nigeria director Isa Sanusi said the gunmen used the river to their advantage. “What happened was that people were chased towards the river; they launched into the river trying to escape the bandits,” Sanusi said.
Nigeria faces a complex security crisis, with civilians regularly attacked by bandits who carry out large-scale kidnappings for ransom and control illegal mining sites, as well as by Islamist groups such as Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province.