Nigeria.-Nearly 200 people were killed by armed men in separate attacks on remote villages in central and northern Nigeria, a local lawmaker, residents and police reported this Wednesday, as security forces searched for survivors and pursued the attackers. In the central state of Kwara, armed men attacked the community of Woro on Tuesday, leaving at least 170 dead, said Saidu Baba Ahmed, a lawmaker from the area, by phone. It was the deadliest attack recorded this year in the border district with Niger state, a region increasingly attacked by armed men who assault villages, kidnap residents and loot livestock. Ahmed said that armed men rounded up the residents, tied their hands behind their backs and killed them execution-style. The lawmaker shared photographs of the bodies with Reuters, but the agency could not immediately verify them.

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The villagers fled to nearby wooded areas during the attack, he said. Armed men set fire to homes and businesses. The police reported that "dozens" of people died, without specifying the number.

"Classifying Corpses"

"While I'm speaking with you now, I'm in the village along with military personnel, classifying corpses and searching the surroundings for more," said Ahmed. Several people were still missing as of Wednesday morning, he added. Residents told Reuters that the armed men, allegedly jihadists who used to preach in the village, demanded that the villagers abandon their allegiance to the Nigerian state and adopt sharia, or Islamic law. When the inhabitants resisted, the militants opened fire during Tuesday's sermon. Kwara police spokesperson, Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi, said that the police and the Army were mobilized to the area for a search and rescue operation, but declined to give details about the victims. In a separate attack in the northern state of Katsina, armed men killed at least 21 people, going from house to house to shoot their victims, residents and local police reported.

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The attack broke a six-month peace pact between the community and the armed group. He also highlighted the dilemma faced by residents of remote northern Nigeria, where some have sought agreements with armed gangs that terrorized them. Residents often gather money and food to give to the bandits to avoid being attacked. Nigeria faces pressure to restore security since US President Donald Trump accused it last year of not protecting Christians after numerous Islamist attacks and mass kidnappings. US forces attacked what they described as terrorist targets on December 25. Nigerian authorities say they are cooperating with Washington to improve security and have denied that there is a systematic persecution of Christians.