Gunmen ambushed security personnel in Nigeria’s northwestern Zamfara state and killed at least eight people.

Axar.az informs, citing AP, the attack took place Thursday on the Gusau-Funtua road in Zamfara state’s Tsafe area and killed five police officers and three members of a local paramilitary group that works with the police, Gov. Dauda Lawal said in a statement posted on Facebook.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the killings.

In recent months, there has been an increase in attacks by armed groups who kidnap residents for ransom in northwest Nigeria, and particularly in Zamfara state.

“We pray to God to bring an end to this security problem in Zamfara state and Nigeria,” Lawal said on Facebook.