Gunmen have abducted scores of worshippers and residents during attacks on communities in Borgu Local Government Area of Niger State, with security forces deployed in an effort to locate and rescue those taken.

The attacks occurred on Friday, August 21, in the Dekara district of Borgu, according to the Niger State Police Command.

Police spokesperson SP Wasiu Abiodun said the assailants first invaded Gidan-Zana and Kpenya villages before attacking Kpenya Mosque at about 2 p.m., while worshippers were observing Juma'at prayers.

The police have not confirmed the number of people abducted.

Abiodun said an unspecified number of residents were taken while others escaped into a nearby forest. He added that the initial police report indicated that no one was killed and that a joint security detachment had been deployed for assessment and rescue operations.

Local officials and residents, however, have provided considerably higher estimates.

Borgu Local Government Chairman Abdullahi Mohammed Nasir told the Associated Press that at least 60 people were kidnapped. He said an unspecified number of residents also suffered gunshot injuries while attempting to escape from the attackers.

Residents interviewed by AP estimated that between 60 and 80 people may have been abducted across the affected communities.

Zubairu Umar Talba, a youth leader in the Dekara area, told AP that his 85-year-old father was among those abducted. He said establishing an exact figure was difficult because many residents had fled their communities following the attacks.

Reuters separately reported that residents described the attacks as coordinated, with incidents occurring in Dekara and other communities in Borgu while people were attending Friday prayers.

The news agency initially carried a figure of more than 60 abducted worshippers but later corrected its report to make clear that the police had not provided an official number and that figures circulating publicly came from eyewitnesses and local sources.

That distinction is important as search and rescue operations continue.

No group had claimed responsibility for the attacks as of the latest reports reviewed by The Verita Post.

Borgu is a large and relatively remote area of Niger State bordering Benin Republic and containing extensive forests around the Kainji Lake region. Communities in Niger and neighbouring states have faced repeated attacks and kidnappings by armed groups operating across difficult-to-police rural areas.

Mass abductions have become a persistent security challenge in parts of north-central and north-western Nigeria, with armed groups targeting villages, highways, schools and places of worship, often demanding ransom for captives.

The latest incident comes as Nigerian security agencies are already responding to several major kidnapping cases.

In Borno State, families protested this week over children who have remained missing for nearly 100 days after being abducted from Mussa community near the Sambisa Forest. Another 36 students and a teacher abducted from nearby Lassa in June also remained in captivity as of Friday.

Police in Niger State said further information on the Borgu attack would be released as the security operation progresses.

For now, authorities have confirmed the attack and abductions, but the precise number of victims remains unresolved.