Gunmen kidnapped 13 people from a mosque where they had gathered to perform prayers in Katsina state, northwest Nigeria.
Katsina state police spokesman Gambo Issa said that gunmen "attacked late Saturday evening the mosque of Megamji village (in Fontua district) and kidnapped 19 worshipers after shooting and injuring the imam and another person" during evening prayers.
"Our men chased them and managed to rescue six of the worshipers, while efforts are underway to release the rest," he added.
The spokesman explained that the two injured are receiving treatment in hospital.
Criminal gangs known locally as "bandits" are active in northwest and central Nigeria, terrorizing the population, attacking and looting villages and killing many residents.
These armed gangs also practice kidnapping for ransom but rarely target places of worship, concentrating on schools and road travelers.
The hostages are usually released after a ransom is paid to gangs who find refuge in the vast Rogo forest that stretches across the states of Zamfara, Niger, Katsina and Kaduna.
Last November, the authorities announced that 15 people had been killed and several others injured in multiple attacks by bandits on villages in neighboring Kaduna state.
President Muhammadu Buhari, who came to power in 2015 and was re-elected in 2019, is under pressure to take action on Nigeria's security problems before leaving office after elections scheduled for next February.