Gunmen stormed a mosque in Nigeria's northern state of Katsina, kidnapping 19 worshippers and shooting an imam, local media reported on Sunday.
The perpetrators abducted 19 people from a local mosque on Saturday evening, the Punch newspaper said, adding that six victims were later rescued. Police spokesman confirmed the attack to the media.
"The terrorists stormed the mosque at Maigamji (village) while people were observing Issaih prayers. They shot and injured the Imam and one other person.
Those people are currently responding to treatment in the hospital. The terrorists also abducted some worshippers that night," state police spokesman Gambo Isah was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
While local media did not specify whether the attack claimed any lives, Reuters reported, citing a local resident, that around 12 people were killed in the attack, including the chief imam.
Armed gangs, known as bandits, attack communities where security is stretched, killing people or kidnapping them for ransom. The gangs also demand villagers pay protection fees to be allowed to farm and harvest their crops.
Lawal Haruna, a resident of Funtua, in President Muhammadu Buhari's home state of Katsina, told Reuters by phone the gunmen arrived at Maigamji mosque on motorbikes and started shooting sporadically, which forced worshippers to flee.
About 12, who were attending night prayers, were caught in the gunfire and killed, including the chief imam, said Haruna.
“They then gathered many people and took them to the bush. I'm praying that the bandits release the innocent people they abducted,” said Abdullahi Mohammed, another resident of Funtua.
Katsina state police spokesperson Gambo Isah confirmed the attack and said state-backed vigilantes, with the support of some residents, had managed to rescue some worshippers.
Katsina is among several states in the northwest of Nigeria which share a border with neighbouring Niger, allowing the gangs to move freely between the two countries.
Nigeria's military has been bombing bush camps used by the bandits, but the attacks continue, raising fears about the safety of voters who will go to the polls to choose Buhari's successor in February.
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