Gunmen kidnap six imams in Zamfara State

Gunmen kidnapped six imams who were on their way to Talata Mafara in Zamfara State on Saturday, according to the police.

Yazid Abubakar, the spokesperson for the Zamfara police command, said the attackers stopped their vehicle along the Dakko, Damri feeder road in Bakura Local Government Area around 11:30 a.m.

In a statement released on Sunday, Mr Abubakar mentioned that the divisional police officer in Bakura took officers to the scene. He added that police and other security agencies were looking for the victims.

The police did not say why the clerics were travelling. But Sahara Reporters earlier mentioned that five clerics were kidnapped after they attended prayers for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election at Abdulaziz Yari’s home in Talata Mafara.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that Yari, a former governor of Zamfara and current senator, was recently named the head of Tinubu’s re-election campaign.

Also, Olaniyi Osoba, a lieutenant colonel and spokesperson for the Nigerian Army’s 8 Division, said the kidnapped men were reportedly going to see Mr Yari.

Mr Osoba spoke to PREMIUM TIMES by phone on Sunday morning. He denied that any cleric was taken from the senator’s house.

"Nothing happened to those ones," he said about the clerics who were there for prayers.

He noted that the military had not confirmed if the kidnapped people were indeed clerics. They had not been rescued at the time of his call.

The police statement did not mention the names of the victims, and Mr Osoba said he did not have that information.

Kidnapping for ransom is common in Zamfara. Many armed groups, known locally as bandits, operate in the area.