A councillor from the area, Mark Bawa, confirmed the incident, saying casualty figures were still being verified.

Suspected terrorists have reportedly attacked two churches in Ariko in Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State, killing at least seven people and abducting several others.

According to a report by Punch, the assault occurred in the early hours of Sunday during Easter celebrations, throwing the community into panic.

The affected worship centres are the First ECWA Church and St Augustine Catholic Church, both located within Ariko.

A councillor from the area, Mark Bawa, confirmed the incident to the newspaper, saying casualty figures were still being verified, noting that initial reports put the death toll at seven. He added that he was on his way to the area to ascertain the full extent of the attack.

Mr Bawa further attributed the scale of the assault to poor telecommunications coverage in the area, which may have delayed a timely response by security agencies.

As of the time of the report, details on the number of abducted victims and any security intervention remained unclear.

Mansir Hassan, the spokesperson for the Kaduna police command, could not be immediately reached for comment.

Mr Hassan, an assistant superintendent of police, did not respond to calls placed through his official line, and an enquiry sent to him remained unanswered.