Armed men kidnap dozens in attacks on Nigerian villages | Armed Groups News
Gunmen Kidnap Worshippers in Niger State Mosque Attack
Published August 22, 2026
Armed men attacked a mosque and surrounding villages in central Niger State, Nigeria, kidnapping dozens of worshippers, according to survivors and police officials.
The assailants targeted Kpenya Mosque in the Dekara district of Borgu Local Government Area around 2 p.m. local time on Friday, following assaults on the nearby villages of Gidan-Zana and Kpenya. Police spokesperson Wasiu Abiodun confirmed the details on Saturday.
Abiodun stated that law enforcement is aware of the kidnappings but has not received reports of fatalities. A joint security team has been deployed to the area for assessment and rescue operations. However, he noted that authorities could not yet confirm how many individuals were taken.
Local residents reported to Reuters that more than 60 worshippers were abducted, although this figure has not been independently verified. Additionally, residents communicated to AFP that there were casualties during the attack, a claim that remains unverified.
Jibril Ahmad, a survivor, attributed the assault to members of the armed group known as Lakurawa. “Soon after finishing the normal Friday prayer, the armed group of Lakurawa, in their hundreds, wielding guns, knives, and machetes, began to attack us,” Ahmad said, claiming that some individuals were “slaughtered.”
During the incident, another group known as Mahmuda intervened and clashed with the gunmen, enabling some abductees to escape, Ahmad reported.
Federal lawmaker Jafaru Mohammed, also speaking to AFP, mentioned that several nearby villages were also targeted. “Some members of the Mahmuda group were against the doctrine of the Lakurawa, and when they heard of what the Lakurawa were doing, they fought them,” Mohammed stated.
The attack occurred in an area near Nigeria’s western border with Benin that has experienced increased activity from local armed groups, amid ongoing violence linked to a 17-year insurgency concentrated in the northeast.
Violence in Niger State continued into Saturday. Resident Abdullahi Ahmad reported that the attackers returned to the area to seize more individuals, allegedly as “bargaining chips” before an expected troop deployment. He also indicated that landmines were planted on roads out of Dekara. “A man and his family who were fleeing the town yesterday were killed when their car hit a landmine planted by the terrorists. Everyone is living in fear,” Ahmad said.
Mass abductions have become a common tactic employed by Nigeria’s armed groups, evolving into a lucrative industry with both ideological and non-ideological criminal networks operating across the northwest and central regions of the country.
