Sokoto Attack: Residents Say Gunmen Killed Three and Seized 28 in Kagara

Unidentified gunmen attacked Kagara community in Goronyo Local Government Area of Sokoto State on Saturday, September 19, 2026, killing three people and taking 28 others captive, according to residents. The assault began around 8:58 p.m. and lasted roughly three hours, with gunfire continuing until about midnight, locals said. Among those killed was Abdullahi Lawwali, a mentally ill man who residents said had been treated at the Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Kware, in Sokoto. One resident said Lawwali was shot after he declined to go with the attackers when they tried to abduct him. The same attackers also took seven people from Lawwali's home, the resident said. A resident whose relatives were among those seized said he avoided capture by hiding when the gunmen entered the community. He said he had prayed Isha at Mallam Liman Alu Mosque, gone home, eaten and locked his house before returning to an Islamic school near the mosque. About seven minutes later, he heard shots coming from the direction of the community hospital, he said. The attackers shot Alhaji Sani, whose residence is near the hospital, before advancing further into the community, according to the resident. He said he hid elsewhere and went home around midnight, only to find that six members of his household had been taken: his wife, Hassana; his daughter-in-law, Marliyya; his son, Atiku; his daughters, Jamila and Amina; and his neighbor's daughter, Yajja. His wife and two daughters had been freed, he said, and his wife told him the captors had taken them as far as Danjiro village. Another resident said 28 people were abducted in the attack and that 10 were released later and returned home Sunday morning. He told Daily Trust that two more were freed in the afternoon, leaving 16 of the abducted victims still in captivity. He said seven people were taken from Abdullahi Dan Abu's house and seven from Mallam Lawwali's house. The mentally ill man, Lawalli, was killed after refusing to accompany the attackers, according to the resident. The resident added that three of the seven people abducted from one household had returned home Sunday morning. He said Maryam Tukur, his elder brother's wife, was among those taken. Three people were killed in the attack, he said, naming them as Ummaru Gobir, Lawwali Idi na Abu and Abdullahi Lawwali. Lawwali Musa and two others suffered gunshot wounds and were being treated at Goronyo hospital, he said. "I can confirm to you that they abducted 28 and released 10 in the morning and two in the afternoon. The remaining 16 people are still there with them," he said. Residents called on authorities to send more security personnel to Kagara, saying the community remained at risk of additional attacks. Sokoto State Police Command spokesperson DSP Ahmad Rufai confirmed that three people were killed and nine others were abducted in the attack. He said all nine abducted persons had escaped from captivity, and one dead body was recovered at the scene.