PREMIUM TIMES reported that at least 64 people were killed in airstrikes by a Nigerian military plane on Sunday at Mutumji Community in the Dansadau District of Zamfara State.
The death toll from last weekend's military operation repelling attacks by non-state actors on some communities in the Dansadau District of Maru Local Government Area of Zamfara State has risen.
Some residents said over 100 people, many of them terrorists, were killed in the attacks.
Among the casualties were 10 soldiers who took part in the operations, sources told PRNigeria, a news platform with close ties to security agencies.
PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that at least 64 people were killed in the airstrike by a Nigerian military plane on Sunday at Mutumji Community in the Dansadau District.
Residents said armed bandits had earlier targeted Malele, Yan Sawayu, Yan Awaki Maigoge, and Ruwan Tofa communities before the attacks were foiled by the air raids which forced the rampaging gunmen to flee into the neighbouring Mutumji community for safety.
However, the terrorists were not the only victims of the air raid in Mutumji. Civilians, including women and children, were also killed.
Dansadau District sits on the ungoverned boundaries of Kebbi, Niger, Kaduna and Katsina States.
Rising casualty figure
Some residents who spoke with PREMIUM TIMES on Tuesday said over 100 terrorists were killed by the military in the ongoing operations.
"The bandits have lost big in the fight, some of them were burying their dead comrades on Monday," a community leader said, asking not to be named for security reasons.
"Their mission in Malele and Ruwan-Tofa was to eliminate every living thing because the communities over the years have resisted their attacks. They invited their kinsmen across Nigeria and some African countries to actualise their mission.
"Unfortunately for them, the timely intervention of the Nigerian Air Force and the ground soldiers have dealt with them decisively beyond their imagination.
"We are grateful and celebrating. Even though our people have been killed but without the response of the soldiers, the attack could have been the worst in Zamfara," the source said.
Another resident, Nuhu Dansadau, said 26 people were killed in the Malele community by the armed bandits while 68 people were killed in the Mutumji community by military airstrikes when the military chased the fleeing terrorists into the community. The deceased included terrorists and civilians, he said.
Mr Dansadau, who is a member of the International Human Rights, Crime Control and Conflict Resolution, said another 27 people were injured in the attacks and are responding to treatment at hospitals in Dansadau and Gusau, the Zamfara State capital.
When contacted by this newspaper, the Air Force spokesperson, Edward Gabkwet, said he would address the press on the matter later.
He added that the offensive against the bandits in the Dansadau axis was ongoing.
Zamfara govt speaks on attack
Meanwhile, the Zamfara State Government has confirmed that the Air Force Strike claimed several lives in the Mutumji community, but did not speak on the number of casualties from the operations.
The state governor, Bello Matawalle, in a statement by his media aide, Zailani Bappa, sympathised with the families of victims caught in the air strike.
"The governor was saddened to hear the latest development when the Nigeria Air Force was out to eliminate a marauding group of bandits which, unfortunately, caught several civilians leaving behind a mixture of casualties involving both the bandits and several civilians.
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"This unfortunate incident has come at a time when both the state government and the Nigerian military are poised to effectively end the menace of the bandits, especially by taking the fight to their enclaves.
"I wish to, on behalf of myself, my family, the state government and the entire good people of Zamfara State, extend my sincere sympathy to those who were injured and the families of those who died as a result of this collateral damage.
"Already, the state government has swung into action to address the remote and immediate causes of the incident with the aim of averting any further ugly incident such as this one in the future," the Zamfara government said.
Zamfara is one of the North-western states most affected by banditry. Others include Kebbi, Katsina and Kaduna. Thousands of people have been killed and others kidnapped by the terror groups.
