*Our attackers are teenagers,survivor’s recount odeal
*Our attackers took large number of children, women away –Traditional ruler
*It was like a horror film, I’ve never seen corpses like that, Says LG chair
The Woro community in Kaiama Local Government Area of Kwara State has been deserted by residents, including the village head, following Tuesday’s bloody bandit attack on the people.
It was gathered that those who were lucky to escape the bloody attacks have refused to return home, despite the deployment of more security personnel to maintain law and order in the community and its environs.
During an inquiry by LEADERSHIP Weekend on the whereabouts of the village head of Woro, it was gathered that the monarch is taking refuge in Kaiama, the headquarters of Kaiama Local Government Area.
LEADERSHIP Weekend recalls that the monarch lost two of his children in the attack, while his mother, wife and three children were also abducted by the bandits.
The Emir of Kaiama, Alhaji Muazu Omar, confirmed that the Woro community has become a ghost town following the wanton destruction of lives and property by the bandits.
He disclosed that the bandits hid under religious evangelism to invade the Woro community.
“The bandits gave the people notice that they were coming to Woro to preach Islam. That was why our people gathered to receive them. But upon realising that what the bandits were preaching negates what Islam stands for, they made an attempt to disperse, and that’s when the bandits started raining bullets on the people,” the Emir said.
Omar said the Woro incident was the highest massacre Nigeria has witnessed in recent times.
He lamented that many innocent people were killed, likening the development to a war situation.
“It’s unfortunate that we lost a large number of lives. This is the highest massacre Nigeria has witnessed in recent times. We counted 75 corpses. It’s just like a war. They took a large number of children and women into the bush.
“This started a long time ago with the advent of the Mahmuda group, but it had been on a small scale before now. A soldier was ambushed in Nuku and killed some time ago, forcing the authorities to withdraw soldiers from the area.
“These people are in the vast forest of the National Park. Unfortunately, some of our people from Borgu (Niger State) and here have joined them; they are the ones giving bandits information.
“We pray that peace returns to our land, as 75 people were already buried. The figure is about 100 now because some relatives took the corpses of the victims for private burials,” he said.
As a solution, the monarch called for a thorough search of the forest by security operatives.
An impeccable source revealed that the village head of Woro, Mal. Umar Bio, had relocated to Kaiama.
“My brother, you cannot speak with the village head now. The man is devastated and completely down. He’s still grieving over the gruesome killing of his people, including two of his children who recently graduated from medical school. His whereabouts were unknown since Tuesday, when the incident happened. But today (Friday), I can confirm to you that the Woro village head is in Kaiama,” he said.
LEADERSHIP Weekend also gathered that some victims of gunshots were receiving treatment at hospitals in Ilorin, the state capital.
The senator representing Kwara North at the National Assembly, Hon. Sadiq Umar, was in the hospital on Friday to commiserate with them.
Meanwhile, survivors of the deadly attacks on Woro and Nuku communities in Kaiama have given gory accounts of how bandits numbering about 200 invaded their communities and massacred about 170 innocent and harmless residents.
They claimed that the bandits stormed their villages around 6.30 pm on the black Tuesday from every corner, shooting sporadically before eventually gathering those who surrendered at the palace of the village head, tying their hands behind their backs and executing them.
Residents who attempted to escape were also shot, the survivors said.
The survivors also narrated how people were locked up in their shops by the bandits before the shops were set on fire.
A survivor and younger brother to the monarch of Woro, Mal. Umar Ali, said the attackers invaded the community in the evening on motorcycles, barricaded the town before opening fire from different directions.
“They came around 6.00 pm and completely surrounded the community and started shooting sporadically from all angles, so nobody could escape,” he said.
He explained that residents who attempted to escape were shot, while those who surrendered were gathered at the palace of the village head, where they were tied up and executed.
He added that some victims were burnt alive inside shops and houses after the attackers locked them in and set the buildings ablaze.
“We physically counted 75 corpses within the town, but people are suggesting the number of those abducted, especially women, could be over 100,” he added.
He further revealed that the wife of the traditional ruler, Hauwa Umar, his mother and three of his children were among those abducted during the attack.
“The village head’s wife, his mother and three of his children are missing. That makes five people from his household unaccounted for,” he added.
Ali said the community was thrown into panic, with many residents fleeing their homes, leaving the town almost deserted.
“The people are scared, and the community is nearly empty. What we need now is increased security presence to restore confidence and allow people to return,” he said.
There was prior intelligence about attack
Ali further revealed that there had been prior intelligence reports of a possible attack, which were reportedly communicated to the appropriate authorities.
He added that soldiers had earlier patrolled the area on a day the attackers were suspected to strike, which he believed discouraged them at the time.
However, Ali said there was no security presence during Tuesday’s attack and that security operatives only arrived after many victims had died from gunshot wounds due to a lack of immediate medical attention.
“The injured were later taken to the General Hospital, but some were referred to the Teaching Hospital,” he said.
They slaughtered innocent people like animals
Another survivor, Ahmed Alhassan, said the bandits killed innocent residents like animals.
He said the closeness of the Woro and Nuku communities made it easier for the night marauders to perpetrate the heinous crime and escape into the bush.
“The bandits tied the hands of the victims before raining bullets on them. After this, the bandits set the palace of the village head of Woro and other residential houses on fire.
“We didn’t really understand the motive behind the latest massacre of our people, because before now, the bandits only kidnapped people from the area for ransom.’
There are terrorist informants within – LG boss
The chairman of Kaiama Local Government Area, Abubakar Danladi, described the incident as disheartening, saying that what they saw at the Woro community during their visit on Wednesday was like a horror film.
Danladi said, “It’s disheartening. What we saw there is like a horror film. I am a medical practitioner; I have never seen corpses like that. We counted 75 corpses, aside from those in the bushes, unaccounted for. We still have more corpses in the bush because they ambushed them.
“As they (the bandits) came, they went straight to the village head’s palace, killed two of his children who had just finished medical school, abducted his children and wives. This means we have bad eggs among us who give bandits information. They took the keys to his two cars, which they used to carry the abductees into the bush. They locked people in their shops and burnt them.”
Attack barbaric, we’ll track down culprits – Gov AbdulRazaq
During a visit to the Woro community, the state governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, described the attack on the people as barbaric and despicable.
AbdulRazaq said he had directed the State Emergency Management Agency to mobilise support for the victims.
The governor issued the directive at about 2 am on Thursday, following his visit to the community, during which he commiserated with the victims, the Emir of Kaiama, Alh. Muazu Omar, and the people of Kaiama Emirate over the attack.
Ahead of the visit to Woro, the governor first arrived in Kaiama on Wednesday night in the company of the House of Assembly Speaker, Rt. Honourable Salihu Yakubu-Danladi, security commanders and senior government officials.
The head of Woro, Alhaji Saliu Bio Umar, and his chiefs also joined the Emir to receive the governor.
The governor, who prayed for the repose of the deceased, announced the immediate deployment of soldiers to the area by the President under Operation Savannah Shield.
“We are very sad. We are here today (Wednesday) to commiserate with Your Royal Highness over the death of 75 of your subjects. May Allaah grant them Al-Jannah Firdaus.
“Your Emirate is versatile, and from the information we have been getting, these victims were massacred because they refused to succumb to a strange Islamic doctrine.
“This is different from what we used to see, where subjects were being kidnapped for ransom. This was a pure massacre. We commiserate with you,” he said.
AbdulRazaq commended President Bola Tinubu for approving the immediate deployment of a battalion of soldiers under ‘Operation Savannah Shield’.
“At the moment, the state emergency services will carry out enumeration and look for how to take care of members of the families.
“We thank the security agencies for doing a yeoman’s job, swinging from one part of the state to the other. As such, the issues in Kwara South have been largely subdued.
“This is a major challenge to tackle now, because it goes beyond Kwara and also extends to the Kainji Park in Niger State. They have murdered sleep, and I can assure you that within the next month, the whole place will be flooded with soldiers, and the results will be positive, God willing,” the governor said.
The Kwara State Police Command said a joint security team comprising the police, military and forest guards had been deployed to Woro to maintain law and order.
The command said it had launched a full-scale investigation to track down the perpetrators and ensure they face the full weight of the law.
The spokesperson of the Kwara State Police Command, Toun Ejire-Adeyemi, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday.
She said the security personnel were already in Woro to maintain law and order, prevent further attacks and reassure residents of their safety.
The statement reads: “The Kwara State Police Command confirms a deadly bandit attack on Woro Community in Kaiama LGA, which occurred on February 3, 2026, at about 1730hrs.
“Preliminary findings gathered at the scene indicate that the hoodlums, suspected to be religious extremists, stormed the community, opening fire sporadically, killing victims, while houses and shops were set ablaze. Sadly, the lives lost have been recovered and given a mass burial.
“A joint security team comprising the police, military and National Forest Guards has since been deployed and is currently on the ground to maintain law and order, prevent further attacks and reassure residents of their safety. A full-scale investigation has been launched to track down the perpetrators and ensure they face the full weight of the law.”
LEADERSHIP Weekend reports that the grieving people of the Woro community recovered the bodies of 78 victims of the attack.
They performed the funeral prayer (janazah) on the corpses at about 6.30 pm on Wednesday evening, shortly before the evening (Maghrib) prayer.
The member representing Gwanabe/Gwaria constituency of Kaiama Local Government Area in the State House of Assembly, Hon. Saidu Baba Ahmed, who witnessed the funeral prayer, said the 78 corpses comprised 75 males and three females.
He also disclosed that 35 residents were abducted and whisked away into the bush by the armed bandits.
He added: “We have recovered 78 corpses – 75 males, three females. We performed janazah (funeral prayer) on the corpses around 6.30 pm. We have commenced burying the corpses in batches. Some were put together in groups of 10, 15 and 20 and given a mass burial.
“The information at my disposal indicates that the casualties are about 170. So our people are still in the bush searching for more bodies. Thirty-five women were abducted. Survivors are also taking refuge in the bush.”
A community leader in Kaiama and former member of the State House of Assembly, Hon. Aliyu Mande, said the casualty figure was 86.
“My brother, the casualty figure is more than 40. It’s about 86, and two children of the village head were among the victims. One of the village head’s children, who was killed, just graduated from the School of Nursing in 2025.
“The bandits also burnt the village head’s palace, shops and residential buildings. We are indeed devastated. The loss of lives and property is huge and unimaginable,” Mande said
Arewa Group Decries Resurgence of Bandit Terror
In the meantime, the Arewa Discussion Group (ADG) has condemned in the strongest terms the alarming resurgence and intensification of bandit terror across many states in northern Nigeria.
The group, in a statement signed by its publicity secretary, Dr Garba Abari, said it was horrified by the recent wave of attacks and abductions plaguing communities in Kwara, Katsina, Kaduna and other parts of the North.
The ADG made particular reference to the devastating attack on Tuesday in the Woro and Nuku communities of Kaiama Local Government Area of Kwara State.
Gov Appoints 7-Person Committee
Meanwhile, the Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, has appointed a seven-member committee to interface with the Woro community regarding the humanitarian support the governor announced earlier on Thursday.
In a statement yesterday, the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Rafiu Ajakaye, said the chairman of the committee is Hon. Ahmed Kiwozi, a former lawmaker from Kaiama Local Government Area.
Other members are the vice chairman of the local government, Aisha Abubakar Sadiq; Alh. Abubakar Mora; Woro village head, Alh. Umar Bio Saliu; and a representative each of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) and Kwara State Social Investment Programme (KWASSIP); and a representative of the Office of the Secretary to the State Government, who should be a female.
The committee, which has four weeks to carry out its assignment, will interface with community leaders on rebuilding efforts, the survivors’ needs and other outstanding issues.