Abuja, January 04 (QNA) - At least 30 people were killed, and others abducted in an attack carried out by gunmen on a market in Niger State, central Nigeria.

Police said in a statement carried by local media on Sunday that armed assailants stormed a market in the village of Demo, set stalls ablaze, and looted food supplies.

According to police, more than 30 people lost their lives in the attack, while several others were abducted. Efforts are ongoing to rescue those kidnapped.

The attack comes weeks after gunmen held more than 300 students and staff hostage at a school in the same state, amid escalating violence across northwestern and central Nigeria.

Criminal gangs, locally referred to as "bandits," routinely carry out mass kidnappings for ransom and raids on villages in several areas. (QNA)