More than 30 people have been killed and several others abducted following a deadly attack by suspected terrorists at Kasuwan-Daji market in the Demo community of Borgu Local Government Area, Niger State.
The attack, which occurred on Saturday, saw heavily armed assailants invade the market, loot foodstuffs and other valuables worth millions of naira, and set the facility ablaze. The attackers were reported to have operated for several hours, from Saturday evening into the early hours of Sunday, without resistance.
A resident of the area said as many as 42 people were tied up and killed during the raid. The terrorists were said to have emerged from the National Park in Borgu LGA and launched the attack in broad daylight.
The Niger State Police Command confirmed the incident on Sunday. In a statement, the Command’s Public Relations Officer, Wasiu Abiodun, a Superintendent of Police, said over 30 people lost their lives, while several others were kidnapped.
According to Abiodun, information received indicated that at about 4:30 pm on January 3, 2026, suspected bandits from the National Park forest along Kabe District invaded Kasuwan-Daji, located at Demo village via Kabe. He said the assailants burnt the market, looted shops, and carted away large quantities of food items.
He added that a joint security team visited the scene at about 8 am on Sunday, January 4, 2026, where it was confirmed that more than 30 victims were killed during the attack. Efforts, he said, are ongoing to rescue those abducted, while further developments will be communicated.
Niger State has witnessed a surge in terrorist attacks in recent months. In November, more than 300 pupils and teachers were abducted from St. Mary’s Private Catholic Primary and Secondary School in Papiri, Agwara Local Government Area.
The school was attacked in the early hours of November 21, 2025, when gunmen on motorcycles stormed the dormitories for over three hours and abducted 315 people, comprising 303 students and 12 teachers. Security operatives and local hunters were deployed to comb the surrounding forests, leading to the escape of 50 pupils within the first day.
The Federal Government later secured the release of 100 schoolchildren, while on December 21, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, announced that all the remaining abducted pupils, numbering 230, had been freed.
