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KANO, Nigeria, July 28, 2025 (AFP) - Criminal gangs in northwestern Nigeria's Zamfara state have slaughtered 33 people months after their kidnapping despite receiving a ransom, local officials and residents said Monday.

"The bandits released only 18 of the 51 people they kidnapped from our village and when we asked them about the 33 others they said they had been slaughtered by their captors," Banga resident Kasimu Ibrahim told AFP.

Local political administrator Mannir Haidara confirmed the killing of the captives, without giving a precise number.