Survivors of deadly attack on villages in Nigeria left reeling

There is nothing but destruction left behind for survivors of a deadly attack on the villages of Woro and Nuku in Nigeria’s Kwara State.

Locals say the suspected jihadists arrived on motorcycles late on Tuesday, opening fire indiscriminately and setting homes ablaze, leaving 170 people dead.

In the deadliest attack in Nigeria in several months, the extremists rounded up the mostly Muslim villagers, tied their arms behind their backs, and shot them in the head.

There has been a surge in violence in the state, as well as other conflict hot spots, as armed groups challenge the government’s authority and compete with one another.

A survivor of the attack, Maryam Muhammed, said there was nothing she could possibly save from her house which was left in ruins.

"In my shop, the fridge that was outside is gone, there’s nothing else. The fences have all been destroyed,” she said.

Muhammed said there were people burnt to death in her house with “no legs or heads, they were chopped off, and I could not recognize them”.

The government has deployed an army battalion to the Kaiama district in the state following the violent attacks.

But with just about everything destroyed, residents say it is going to take much more than that for them to get back on their feet.

Another survivor, Abdullahi Ibrahim, said the remote community is neglected.

"That is why the so-called attackers are coming to invade the community to destroy their lives for nothing. Look at this community, look at the people they killed," he said.

Resident, Umar Bio Kabir, said while the government “is trying its best” by bringing soldiers, the community will never be the same.

"Because even though they say yes today, the community is normal, and nothing will happen again. It's not everybody that will come back here. So, in fact there is a lot of damage that has happened."

Days after the killings, residents are finding it difficult to breathe as the harmattan wind blows the ashes of burned houses and shops, spreading the stench of blood.

As zinc roofs clatter lightly against each other in the wind, they wonder how they will be able to rebuild their lives.