Residents of a Nigerian community have disputed the army’s assertion that it rescued 31 civilians held hostage following a Sunday morning church attack in the north.
The army had said that it freed the civilians seized by gunmen who had raided a church in Ariko, Kaduna state, during Easter celebrations. The authorities said five civilians had been killed, but a local church official put the number of dead at seven.
But the president of the Ariko community association, Joseph Ariko, told the BBC that the captives were still unaccounted for, and asked the army to name the rescued. “As far as we are concerned, all the abducted victims are still with the bandits.”
The army has not yet responded.
It had said that soldiers engaged the attackers in a “fierce firefight”, forcing them to flee and leave the hostages and the bodies of the dead victims behind.
Attacks and kidnappings for ransom are common occurrences in northern Nigeria, as the country grapples with security threats from jihadist groups and armed gangs, locally known as bandits.
Although the army said it responded swiftly to Sunday’s attack, local media report that residents said the gunmen operated for a long time without facing resistance.
On Monday, Rev John Hayab of the Christian Association of Nigeria questioned the rescue claims after speaking with residents.
“Nobody has been rescued… If they are rescued, where did they take them to?” he told the BBC.
As a result of the firefight, officials had said the “fleeing terrorists” had “significant casualties, as evidenced by blood trails along their escape routes”.
Troops had also been deployed to hunt the insurgents and reinforce security.
The army urged residents to share information that can support operations against groups fuelling insecurity across the country.
In a separate incident, Nigeria’s military killed 65 bandits following an offensive in Zamfara state, the AFP news agency reported on Sunday, days after a large group of bandits abducted residents from villages in the state.
Police had on Saturday confirmed that there had been a mass abduction in villages in the state earlier in the week and a manhunt had been launched.
Late last year, the administration of US President Donald Trump raised concerns about the treatment of Christians in Nigeria – and urged the government to do more to improve security and strengthen protection for Christian communities.
Trump had previously claimed there was a “Christian genocide” under way in Nigeria – an allegation strongly rejected by Nigeria’s government, which said Muslims, Christians and people of no faith were victims of attacks.
In February, US troops were deployed to Nigeria to train its forces and help them with intelligence in their fight against Islamist militants and other armed groups.
Additional reporting by Basillioh Rukanga
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