Tension erupted in Katsina State after suspected bandits killed 13 worshippers during dawn prayers at Unguwa Muntau, a community located between Malumfashi and Bakori local government areas.
The attack, which occurred in the early hours, triggered outrage among residents and youths who trooped to the streets to protest.
They blocked the busy Malumfashi–Funtua highway, a major route linking Kano to Funtua, Gusau, and Sokoto, leaving travellers stranded for several hours.
The demonstration later spread to Malumfashi town, causing a total gridlock and forcing many commuters to abandon their journeys.
Eyewitnesses said the attackers stormed the mosque without provocation and opened fire on worshippers.
A resident, Abubakar, who narrowly escaped, recounted: “They just entered and started shooting at people who were praying. Thirteen people died instantly. It was something we had never seen before.”
In anger, protesters barricaded the highway with stones, logs, and burning tyres, demanding urgent government intervention to secure their communities.
One stranded traveller told our correspondent: “We spent more than three hours stuck, waiting for security agents to intervene, but no one came. At one point, a young man among the protesters threatened to set our vehicle on fire if we tried to move.
“Eventually, one driver volunteered to lead us through rough village paths before we got out. What should have been a seven-hour journey from Kano to Sokoto took nearly 24 hours.”
He added that the situation worsened when “travellers reached Miyanchi, about 30 kilometres from Zamfara State, only to find the road already shut for the night under the usual 6:30 p.m. to dawn security restriction.”