Gunmen on 50 Motorcycles Raid Taraba Village, Death Toll Disputed

Gunmen riding in a convoy of about 50 motorcycles swarmed Binnari village in Nigeria's Taraba State shortly after Friday prayers, opening fire and looting shops before withdrawing. Police said 10 bodies had been recovered by Friday evening. Amnesty International put the death toll at 40 in a statement issued Saturday, while survivors told AFP they counted more than 20 bodies.

Malam Abubakar Saifullahi, a community leader, said each motorcycle carried two attackers. He told AFP the raiders stripped shops of cash, food and other goods, and took motorcycles left behind by residents who fled. Police confirmed the attackers also took food from shops during the raid.

Residents are still counting. "After the attackers left, we counted more than 20 bodies, and some people were still missing," Binnari resident Sa'idu Nuhu told AFP. Isiyaku Musa, another resident, also put the toll at no fewer than 20. Amnesty International said police initially confirmed 10 deaths before more bodies were found later Saturday.

Taraba is a central-eastern state where bandit gangs operate. These groups raid villages, kidnap people for ransom, and levy payments on farmers and miners in areas where the state has little presence. Similar violence has spread across northwest and central Nigeria, where armed gangs engage police and military forces in remote rural areas. Nigeria has also fought an armed rebellion since the 2009 Boko Haram uprising.

Amnesty International criticized Nigerian authorities, saying they "continue to leave rural communities in some parts of the north at the mercy of gunmen that are repeatedly committing atrocities with impunity".

In a separate operation Saturday, the Nigerian military said an air strike in the northeastern state of Borno killed 15 "terrorists".