At least 46 killed in armed attacks across three villages in Nigeria's Niger State

At least 46 people were killed on Saturday during attacks by armed men on three villages in Niger State, located in west-central Nigeria. According to a humanitarian source cited by Agence France-Presse, the violence occurred in the Borgu administrative district near the border with Kwara State. In Konkoso village, 38 individuals were either shot or had their throats slit by the assailants. Additionally, seven people were killed in Tungan Makeri and one person was killed in Pissa. This incident follows a previous attack in early February where over 160 people were killed by jihadists in the neighboring Kwara State. The rise in lethal attacks and mass kidnappings has prompted international concern, particularly from the United States, regarding Nigeria's security situation. Nigeria currently faces multiple security challenges, including a 16-year jihadist insurgency in the northeast and farmer-herder conflicts in the north-central region. Furthermore, separatist violence persists in the southeast while kidnapping for ransom remains a major threat in the northwest. Security experts expressed concern that these criminal activities may be gradually spreading to the relatively safer southwest regions.