Kwara Bloodshed: Woro Buries 78 Victims, Village Head’s Children Among Dead as Bandits Abduct 35

The Woro community in Kaiama Local Government Area of Kwara State has conducted mass burial rites for scores of residents killed during a brutal bandit attack, as fear and uncertainty continue to grip the Area.

Global Mirror News reports that at least 78 bodies have so far been recovered and buried following the Tuesday February 4 evening assault on Woro and neighbouring Nuku Communities.

The deceased include two children of the village head, one of whom was said to have graduated from a School of Nursing in 2025.

According to sources who spoke with Global Mirror News, the armed bandits stormed the village head’s palace, killed his two children, and demanded that his wife and remaining children be handed over.

The attackers reportedly destroyed several vehicles within the palace and used the only functional one to abduct the wife and children into the surrounding bush.

A community source disclosed that Islamic funeral prayers (janazah) were held for the deceased at about 6:30pm on Wednesday, shortly before the Magrib prayer, after which the victims were buried in mass graves.

Confirming the development, the lawmaker representing Gwanabe/Gwaria constituency in the Kwara State House of Assembly, Hon. Saidu Baba Ahmed, said the recovered corpses comprised 75 males and three females.

“We have recovered 78 bodies so far. Janazah was performed around 6:30pm, and the burials were carried out in batches of 10, 15 and 20 due to the number of casualties,” he told Global Mirror News.

The lawmaker further revealed that no fewer than 35 residents, mostly women, were abducted during the attack, while many survivors fled into nearby bushes to escape further violence.

Information available to Global Mirror News suggests that the death toll may rise significantly, as preliminary estimates indicate that about 170 persons may have been killed, with search efforts still ongoing in surrounding forests.

Residents also told Global Mirror News that the bandits set several houses and shops ablaze before leaving the community, leaving Woro largely deserted and reducing the once-peaceful settlement to ruins.

Recall that reports earlier indicated that the armed bandits launched coordinated attacks on Woro and Nuku communities around 6pm on Tuesday, killing scores of people and destroying property, in one of the deadliest incidents recorded in the Area in recent times.