No fewer than 18 persons, including a vigilante leader, have been killed in separate attacks on communities under the Ruwandoruwa ward of the Maru Local Government Area in Zamfara State.

An eyewitness, Aminu Ilyasu, who is a member of a local vigilante group known as Yansakai, said the armed bandits targeted the vigilante leader of Dangamji community.

He said the vigilante leader, Dahiru Dangamji, was killed alongside three other persons in his hideout inside the bush around Danzara community.

He said: "The bandits purposely targeted a vigilante leader, Dahiru. He was killed alongside three other persons in his hideout at Danzara community.

"We usually go inside the bush to hide because we know how the bandits operate and they also know that we normally hide inside the bush."

He added that when the news of Dahiru's death got to the community, members of the vigilante group in Ruwandoruwa quickly mobilised to the area but they were ambushed by the bandits along the road.

"Along our way to Danzara, we met them on the road and we exchanged gunfire that lasted for hours, 11 of our members were killed in the gun battle, while several of the bandits were also killed, if I may get the figures right, we killed about 10 of them."

Although Police authorities in the state were yet to confirm the incident, when contacted, the acting Public Relations Officer of Zamfara State Police Command, Yazid Abubakar, said the command was yet to receive any report of the incident.

Another resident of Ruwandoruwa, Abdullahi Ruwandoruwa, said the bandits afterwards moved to Arafa community and a neighbouring settlement, where they killed three persons, including one 20-year-old Murtala Hussaini, Sani Mansur and one Abu Boss.

"The bandits who were moving along Arafa community area shot two persons dead, and also killed one person at the next settlement along Ruwandoruwa," Ilyasu said.