Kwara Attack: Fresh Details Emerge as Community Holds Mass Burial of 78 People
- The Woro community in Kaiama LGA, Kwara state, recovered 78 bodies after the deadly bandit attack.
- The victims were given janazah according to the Islamic rites and buried in batches on Wednesday evening
- A lawmaker said 35 people were abducted, while locals insisted more bodies could still be found in the bush
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Legit.ng Journalist Muslim Muhammad Yusuf is a 2025 Wole Soyinka Award winner, with over 8 years of experience in investigative reporting, human rights, politics, governance and accountability in Nigeria.
Kwara state - Woro community in Kaiama local government area of Kwara state has been thrown into deeper mourning after residents recovered 78 corpses following a deadly bandit attack on Tuesday.
According to reports, the bodies were recovered on Wednesday as locals continued searching the bush and surrounding areas for missing residents.
Source: Original
Legit.ng reports that more than 100 residents of the Woro community in Kaiama local government area (LGA) of Kwara state have been killed following a deadly invasion by suspected terrorists linked to Boko Haram.
Community sources who escaped the attack told Legit.ng in exclusive interviews on Wednesday, January 4, that the attackers stormed Woro on Tuesday evening, January 3, shooting sporadically, killing residents, and setting houses ablaze.
Mass burial held after janazah
A member of the Kwara State House of Assembly representing Gwanabe/Gwaria constituency, Hon. Saidu Baba Ahmed, confirmed the development.
He said the community performed the funeral prayer (janazah) for the victims around 6:30 pm on Wednesday, shortly before the magrib prayer.
The lawmaker disclosed that the 78 bodies recovered comprised 75 males and three females.
“We have recovered 78 corpses – 75 males, three females. We performed janazah (funeral prayer) on the corpses around 6.30pm,” he said.
“We buried them in batches”
Hon. Baba Ahmed added that burials had already started, with victims being laid to rest in groups due to the number of casualties.
“We have commenced burying the corpses in batches. Some were put together in 10, 15 and 20 and given mass burial,” he added.
The lawmaker also claimed that 35 residents were abducted and taken into the bush by the attackers.
He further said information available to him suggested that the total casualty figure could be far higher than what had been recovered so far.
“The information at my disposal indicated that the casualties are about 170. So, our people are still in the bush searching for more bodies,” he said.
Village head’s children reportedly among victims
Sources in the community told LEADERSHIP that two children of the village head were among those killed during the raid.
They also alleged that the attackers set the palace of the village head, residential buildings and shops on fire.
However, a community leader in Kaiama and former member of the Kwara State House of Assembly, Hon. Aliyu Mande, disputed some of the figures, insisting the death toll was already above 40.
“My brother, the casualty figure is more than 40. It’s about 86,” Mande said.
He also confirmed that two children of the village head were killed, adding that one of them had recently graduated from a School of Nursing in 2025.
“The bandits also burnt the village head’s palace, shops and residential buildings. We are indeed devastated,” he added.
Source: Getty Images
Meanwhile, a source claimed soldiers and forest guards had taken over the affected communities as tension remained high.
The attack is the latest in a series of violent raids in parts of Kwara, with residents repeatedly calling for stronger security action to stop the killings and abductions.
Tinubu takes action
Legit.ng earlier reported that President Bola Tinubu, on Wednesday night, February 4, ordered the deployment of an army battalion to Kaiama Local Government Area (LGA), Kwara State, where Boko Haram terrorists killed hapless villagers in Worro.
According to a statement by Bayo Onanuga, one of the presidential spokespersons, President Tinubu said the new military command will spearhead Operation Savannah Shield to checkmate the barbaric terrorists and protect defenceless communities. The statement was obtained by Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
