At least 30 people are dead and multiple churches destroyed after gunmen believed to be Boko Haram militants ravaged villages in northeast Nigeria Sunday. It all happened near the area where 276 girls were abducted in April.
CNN reports gunmen riding motorcycles raided four Christian villages in the state of Borno, opening fire on civilians and launching explosives at homes and churches Sunday morning.
A local said, "They are no doubt Boko Haram. ... They burnt five churches and the entire village [of Kwada]" before moving to the other three. (Via CNN)
According to The Telegraph, the insurgents "burst into churches" and "sprayed gunfire at Sunday worshippers."
A resident of nearby Chibok — where the girls were kidnapped in April — is quoted in The Sydney Morning Herald saying, "From what I gathered, dozens of worshippers, including men, women and children were killed."
Witnesses said gunmen tracked down and killed some people as they tried to run away, though many people were able to successfully flee the area. A BBC correspondent says the locals are getting fed up with their government's lack of response to the ongoing violence.
"They're saying an air force plane was seen over the area, a Nigerian air force plan, but they're saying no Nigerian soldiers were sent to help them, so that's really causing a lot of anger in these villages."
According to Voice of America, last week suspected Boko Haram militants killed 30 people and kidnapped at least 90 women, young girls and boys in the Damboa district of the Borno state.
"It would appear that there was now confidence on an all-time low basis here. No one is satisfied with the level of protection. ... As far as the attacks go, they are happening almost on a daily basis." (Via Al Jazeera)
And the deathtoll is certainly adding up.
The Voice of Russia reports — in total— Boko Haram is responsible for killing more than 2,000 people in Northern Nigeria this year alone.
