Gunmen kill 50 in Plateau, Yobe •Burn 60 houses

PLATEAU State was thrown into another round of confusion onTuesday, following invasion of two communities in Riyom Local Government Area of the state by some unknown gunmen, who killed 30 civilians, two men of the Special Task Force (STF) and set 60 houses ablaze.
The affected villages, Rajak and Atakar, had been under severe attacks for the past one year, with two railway Chinese contractors killed while inspecting railway line project in Atakar, about two weeks ago.
Nigerian Tribune learnt that the gunmen, suspected to be Fulani herdsmen, invaded the villages in droves in the early hours of Tuesday and positioned themselves at various entry points leading to the villages, while a handful of others made incursion into the villages to perpetrate the dastardly act.
It was gathered that in the attack that lasted for close to two hours, the gunmen had a field day, as the inhabitants did not expect such coordinated attack.
Some of the residents who attempted to escape were killed by the gunmen, who positioned themselves at the entry points to the villages.
An eyewittiness, who escaped the attack narrowly, told the Nigerian Tribune that 19 people were killed in Atakar village, while 11 others were killed in Rajak, alongside two men of the STF who came to repel the attackers.
A member of the state House of Assembly representing the area, Honourable Daniel Dem, who confirmed the attack, said no fewer than 30 people were killed in the early morning attack in the two villages along with two STF men, adding that leader of the security men in the area escaped death narrowly.
According to him, the two villages are surrounded by hills and share boundary with Kaduna State, adding that the topography of the area often made it difficult to detect the presence of the attackers on the hills.
Honourable Dem, therefore, called on the Federal Government to carry out surveillance of the hills using helicopters, so as to dislodge the marauders.
Nigerian Tribune further learnt that those killed were given mass burial at about 3.45 p.m on Tuesday, amidst wailing and crying by people of neighbouring villages who came to witness the burial.
All efforts to confirm the attack from the STF media officer, Captain Salisu Mustapha, failed, but the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Felicia Anslem, confirmed the attack.
In a related development, Yobe State police command, on Tuesday, confirmed the killing of 18 traders by bandits in army uniforms in Bara village.
Also, the command confirmed the death of a policeman, who was shot dead by the suspected bandits in the area.
Alhaji Sanusi Rufai, the state Commissioner of Police, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the traders were ambushed by the bandits while travelling back from Ngalda Market.
“The bandits attacked and killed 18 traders; 10 from Kukuwa and eight from Dokshi villages and took away their money.
“The bandits were masked and wore army uniform,” he said.
Sanusi said a policeman attached to a quarry in Bara village was also shot dead by the fleeing bandits.
“The Joint Task Force (JTF) and police are now combing the bush, while security agents across the state are on red alert,” he said.
Sanusi stressed that the police were rebuilding confidence among the communities to volunteer information to security operatives.
The commissioner said “bandits now parade themselves as Boko Haram to induce fear in the people.”
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