At least 170 people have been killed by a mob of gunmen in Nigeria, local officials claim.

The attack on the remote village of Woro on Tuesday is among the deadliest of the year so far in a country currently rocked by sectarian violence.

The jihadist raiders had demanded villagers embrace Sharia law, survivors told Reuters.

When they pushed back the militants opened fire.

Residents were rounded up, with their hands bound behind their backs before being executed, local lawmaker Saidu Baba Ahmed claimed.

He added that authorities are still combing through the bushland to find survivors.

He told Reuters: "As I'm speaking to you ​now, I'm in the village along with military personnel, sorting dead bodies and combing the surrounding areas for more."

The attackers also torched homes and shops before fleeing.

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Woro sits in the central region of Kwara - an area increasingly targeted by gunmen who raid ​villages, kidnap residents and loot livestock.

Kwara police spokesperson Adetoun Ejire-Adeyem said the police and ‌military have been mobilised to the area for a search-and-rescue ‍operation.

He declined to provide exact casualty details.

Just last month around 150 churchgoers were kidnapped by a group of bandits in Nigeria.

Nigeria has become a focal point for the United States in recent months, after President Donald Trump accused it last year of failing to protect Christians.

It led to American forces striking what they described as terrorist targets on Christmas Day.

(c) Sky News 2026: More than 170 killed in suspected Islamist attack in Nigeria