Gunmen have killed nearly 200 people in western and northern Nigeria, officials and residents say, as survivors buried the dead and security forces hunted the attackers.
Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced the deployment of an army battalion to the western state of Kwara, after gunmen stormed the community of Woro on Tuesday evening, killing at least 170 people. A further 21 people were killed in a separate attack in the city of Katsina in northern Nigeria, with gunmen murdering people as they moved from house to house.
In a statement published on social media late on Wednesday, Tinubu said the military command would spearhead the effort, codenamed Operation Savannah Shield, “to checkmate the barbaric terrorists and protect defenseless communities.”
The killings in Kwara marked the deadliest attack recorded in the region in recent months.
The attack followed recent military operations in the area against what authorities called “terrorist elements.”
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Gunmen Kill Nearly 200 people in Nigeria’s Kwara and Katsina States
02/04/2026
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