The Head of Woro village in Kaiama Local Government Area of Kwara State, Umar Salihu, has disclosed that terrorists attacked the community for nearly 10 hours before security forces arrived, leaving scores of residents dead and large parts of the village destroyed.

Speaking on Arise News on Friday, Salihu said the attack started around 5 p.m. and that distress calls were immediately made to security agencies, but troops only arrived at about 3 a.m. the following day.

According to the village head, by the time soldiers reached the area, the attackers had already left, adding that there was no air support during the attack.

“I called about 5 p.m., but they did not come until about 3 a.m. That was from 5 p.m. to about 3 a.m. That is about 10 hours.

“The military did not attack them. The bandits had gone when the military came.

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“The plane did not engage them. They did not interdict. They did not drop any ammunition on them,” Salihu said.

Salihu said the community had been left vulnerable after soldiers previously stationed in the area were withdrawn following an earlier attack.

“Initially, we had a military base there. We had about 15 soldiers there. About three to five months ago, they attacked the soldiers. Since then, they evacuated them. We have no security presence in that area.

“That gave them the opportunity to come anytime, enter anytime and do whatever they like.”

He identified the attackers as members of the Mamuda terrorist group, explaining that the violence followed the community’s refusal to accept their ideology.

“Exactly. Our people are not ready to take that ideology. I think that is what made them angry to come and attack the communities,” he said.

The village head dismissed claims that the killings were religiously motivated, noting that most of the victims were Muslims.

“The people they killed are mostly Muslims. About 95 per cent are Muslims and five per cent are Christians.”

Salihu also revealed that he had earlier reported a threat letter to security agencies, raising concerns that sensitive intelligence may have been compromised.

“When they brought the letter, they brought it directly to me. That night, I sent the letter to the Department of State Security, DSS in Kaiama.

“The following day, I took the letter myself to the Emirate Council. They photocopied it. In that process, I think they lost the appropriate contact.”

He said the attackers became hostile after security patrols were conducted following the report.

Salihu disclosed that no fewer than 75 people had been buried, while more bodies were still being recovered from surrounding bushes.

“As of yesterday, we buried 75 people. But as I’m speaking with you, there are still corpses in the bush.

“They burnt almost half of the villages, including my house,” he said.

He confirmed that Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq visited the affected communities and ordered immediate security deployment.

“Immediately, they took action. They directed the barracks to provide security. About 15 soldiers were deployed, and there are now about 80 security agents there.”