More than 100 killed in bandit attacks in central Nigeria: sources

ABUJA -- More than 100 people were killed after unknown gunmen attacked two villages in Nigeria's central Kwara State late Tuesday, local sources said Wednesday.

The unidentified gunmen attacked the Woro and Nuku communities of Kaiama Local Government Area late Tuesday and returned early Wednesday, wreaking havoc by shooting indiscriminately at residents, while also razing some houses, sources told Xinhua.

The death toll had risen to about 67 earlier in the day but surged to over 100 by Wednesday afternoon after the gunmen launched a second attack, taking advantage of poor road conditions, an official with the Nigerian Red Cross Society told Xinhua.

Survivors and local hunters launched search-and-rescue operations Wednesday ahead of the arrival of state security forces, the official added.

The Kwara state government condemned the killings on Wednesday, describing them as "a desperate response by terrorist groups to ongoing security operations."

Kwara State Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq extended condolences to the victims' families and assured residents that security agencies had been directed to intensify operations in the area.