Scores of travellers on Wednesday were reportedly confirmed dead after a vehicle conveying them ran on explosives planted along the Dansadau-Gusau Road in the Maru Local Government Area of Zamfara State.
An anonymous source told Daily Trust that the explosives were planted by some bandits after the completion of community work on the road.
The source, a resident of Yar Tasha village, narrated: “We recently conducted community work on the road and the bandits used that opportunity to plant the device at one of the spots.
“The victims were rushed to Dansadau General Hospital and nobody can ascertain whether they are dead or alive for now. Security personnel comprising soldiers and police have been deployed to the scene of the incident.
“It appears that the bandits in Zamfara State have developed a new strategy of operation, especially in this Dansadau axis. This is the second time they would plant an explosive device in this area within a week. They planted one on Sunday.
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“Government should take decisive measures to stop this trend otherwise, travelling by road will now be a difficult thing among the people of the state. The security personnel and communities should be vigilant and always keep an eye on them. This is a terrible method deployed by the bandits and it needs to be tackled as soon as possible.”
Another resident of the area, identified as Abdullahi Dansadau told Channels Television that a Volkswagen Golf 3 vehicle exploded after it ran over the explosives, killing six people, and leaving eight others injured.
“It was this morning, one Golf 3 vehicle stepped on the bomb and exploded. We have six dead bodies here now and eight others sustained injuries. The vehicle was destroyed completely,” Dansadau said.
However, confirming the incident in a statement made available to the TV station the Coordinator, Joint Media Coordination Centre, Joint Task Force North West Operation Fansar Yamma, Lit. Col. Abubakar Abdullahi stated:
“We acknowledge the reports regarding the suspected bandits planting explosives along the Dansadau-Gusau Road, which unfortunately led to some destruction.
“The safety and security of our citizens are of paramount importance. We are currently coordinating with local law enforcement to assess the situation and ensure that those responsible do not go free.”
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