Gunmen suspected to be bandits on Sunday killed nine people at Rugar Kusa village in Musawa local government area of Katsina State.
The spokesman for the state police command, ASP Abubakar Sadiq-Aliyu, said in a statement on Monday that 16 other persons were seriously injured when the assailants attacked Muslim faithful celebrating the Maulud in the community.
He said: “On November 5, at about 10:30 p.m., suspected armed bandits in their numbers, wielding dangerous weapons such as AK-47 rifles and shooting sporadically, attacked the Maulud procession.
“Upon receipt of the report, immediately, operatives were mobilised and swung into action, where they succeeded in repelling the attack.
“Seven people were shot dead at the scene, and 18 others sustained gunshot wounds, and were evacuated to General Hospital Musawa for immediate medical attention.”
He said two out of the 18 injured persons were later confirmed dead by a medical doctor while receiving treatment at the hospital.
Sadiq-Aliyu said efforts to arrest the perpetrators are ongoing.