Gunmen kidnap 18 villagers in latest attack in northern Nigeria

FILE PHOTO: People gather to protest killings in southern Kaduna and insecurities in Nigeria, at the U.S. embassy in Abuja, Nigeria August 15, 2020. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde

KADUNA, Nigeria (Reuters) - Gunmen invaded a village in the northern Nigerian state of Kaduna and kidnapped 18 residents including seven children, a community leader said on Tuesday, the latest in a wave of mass abductions disrupting every aspect of life in the region.

Gangs of ransom seekers have been kidnapping children from their schools, villagers from their homes and travellers from their vehicles across northwest Nigeria since last December.