About 200 dead in attacks in northwest Nigeria, residents say

FILE PHOTO: Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari speaks during the 75th anniversary celebrations of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) at UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France, November 12, 2021. Julien de Rosa/ Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (Reuters) -An estimated 200 people or more have been killed in villages in the northwestern Nigerian state of Zamfara during deadly reprisal attacks by armed bandits following military air strikes on their hideouts this week, residents said on Saturday.

Residents gained access to the villages on Saturday after the military captured the communities to organise mass burials, they told Reuters. The state government said 58 people had been killed during the attacks.