At least a dozen people have been killed and others wounded or kidnapped in a series of attacks in northeast and central Nigeria, police and officials said Monday.

Insecurity remains a major problem in Africa’s most populous country, where a new president is expected to take office next month after elections contested by the opposition.

In Andamawa state (northeast), unknown gunmen stormed Dabna village in Hong district and killed three people, local police spokesman Suleiman Guroje said, adding that houses were set on fire.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack on Monday. However, Boko Haram jihadists frequently carry out raids in the area from strongholds in the Sabisa Forest in neighboring Borno state.

Also yesterday Monday, gunmen attacked communities in Kogi State (central).

The governor’s spokesman, Mohammed Onogu, said a local politician had been killed and there were other casualties.

On Sunday, gunmen stormed a church in the village of Akenawe-Tshuarev in Benue state (central-east), killed one worshiper and kidnapped three others, said Salome Tor, a local official.

Two other people were seriously injured and are being treated in a hospital, according to her, who did not specify who carried out the attack. Benue state has been the scene of bloody conflicts between herdsmen and farmers for years.

On Saturday, in Niger state (central west), gunmen attacked villages in Mashegu and Munya districts, killing at least seven people and abducting 26 others, according to a local official.

President Muhammadu Buhari, who will step down in May, leaves his successor, Bola Tinubu, to deal with a jihadist insurgency in the northeast, gang activity in the northwest and center, and separatist activities in southeastern parts of Nigeria. .