Gunmen kill at least 29 at football pitch in north-east Nigeria, governor says

Gunmen have killed at least 29 people in north-east Nigeria , a state governor said on Monday, with local people saying the attackers targeted young people gathered at a football pitch, the latest bout of deadly unrest in Africa’s most populous nation. The attack on Sunday occurred in Adamawa state, which borders Cameroon, and is a hotspot for violence by jihadists and criminal gangs. Communal violence over conflict for land is also rife in the state. The latest attack comes as Nigeria’s security crisis is increasingly under scrutiny both abroad and at home as general elections are less than a year away. Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, the governor of Adamawa state, visited the scene of Sunday’s attack and “confirmed that no fewer than 29 people were killed in a deadly attack on Guyaku community in Gombi local government area”, his spokesperson said in a post on social media. Local people also gave a similar toll. Philip Agabus, a local resident, told Agence France-Presse: “Our people converged at a football pitch in Guyaku community ... [and] were attacked by insurgents who entered with guns and began shooting randomly.” The dead were “youths, including some ladies that were watching football”, another resident, Joshua Usman, told AFP. …