Terrorists stormed Woro village in Kwara State, Nigeria, on Tuesday evening, killing at least 162 residents in a brutal attack.
Dozens of armed terrorists invaded Woro around 6 p.m. on February 3, 2026, rounding up villagers, binding their hands, and executing them in cold blood.
They torched homes, shops, and the traditional ruler’s palace, forcing survivors to flee into nearby bushes amid gunfire and flames.
The assault, which also targeted the neighboring village of Nuku, left entire families wiped out and the community in ruins.
Eyewitnesses described how the terrorists gathered residents under the pretext of a religious sermon before tying their hands and shooting them.
Several women and children suffered abduction, while others remain missing, including the village king, Alhaji Saliu Bio Umar, whose palace burned to ashes.
The Red Cross updated the death toll to 162 as search teams recovered more bodies from the debris, with Amnesty International estimating over 170 fatalities.
The terrorists retreated temporarily after spotting an approaching military aircraft, but survivors reported they returned the next morning to target those who ventured back.
Village head Umar Bio Salihu lamented the military’s delayed response, noting that soldiers arrived only at 3 a.m., a full 10 hours after the attack began.
This lag highlighted ongoing intelligence and logistical shortcomings in protecting rural areas.
In response, President Bola Tinubu deployed an army battalion to the Kaiama district to hunt the attackers and secure the region.
Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq visited the site, condemned the “cowardly” retaliation, and increased local security forces from 15 to 80 personnel.
Security analysts attributed the massacre to a Boko Haram faction, possibly Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (JAS), or Sahel-linked groups like Lakurawa affiliated with Islamic State.
The terrorists struck in reprisal for recent Nigerian military operations that disrupted their forest hideouts near the Benin border.
Furthermore, reports indicated the attack followed the emir’s refusal to adopt the group’s extremist Sharia demands, enraging them after locals collaborated with security forces.
Meanwhile, similar assaults unfolded in Katsina State, pushing the combined death toll across both states to nearly 200.
The African Union Commission condemned the violence, expressing sorrow over the loss of innocent lives.
As investigations continue, experts warn that these incursions signal a southward creep of Sahel terrorism, urging regional cooperation between Nigeria, Benin, and Niger to seal porous borders and prevent further tragedies.
