Ekeomah Atuonwu
More than a dozen people, including women and children, drowned when their boat capsized in the central Nigerian state of Niger while fleeing armed gang attacks.
According to emergency officials, eight bodies have been recovered, including those of two women and six children, while five people remain missing. Search and rescue operations are currently underway.
The victims were fleeing a deadly attack by gunmen on their village of Galkogo on Tuesday.
Their boat then capsized in the middle of a major river. Some were able to escape, but many drowned. According to officials, the boat was weak and overloaded.
Armed gangs, known as bandits in Nigeria, have increased their attacks, displacing nearly a million people.
They attacked a crowded passenger train traveling from Abuja to the northern city of Kaduna on Monday, killing nearly a dozen people and kidnapping others.
Despite the deployment of thousands of troops, the government is under fire for failing to address the escalating violence.
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