ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Gunmen killed three villagers and abducted 11 people, including a Catholic priest, during a predawn attack in northwest Nigeria on Saturday, church officials said.

The gunmen attacked the priest’s residence in the Kauru local government area of Kaduna state at about 3 a.m., Kaduna’s Catholic Diocese of Kafanchan said in a notice that described the assault as “an act of invasion by a group of terrorists.”

The attack is the latest in a cycle of violence that has surged in the conflict-battered north of the country. More than 150 Christians were abducted from three churches in another part of Kaduna in January before being released this week while at least 160 people, mostly Muslims, were killed by Islamic extremists in Kwara state for refusing to be indoctrinated.

Authorities didn’t immediately provide details about the latest attack in Kaduna or about any rescue efforts.

The Kaduna Catholic church called for prayers for the victims and the safe release of the hostages.

Northern Nigeria is in the grip of a complex security crisis featuring both Islamic militants and armed gangs kidnapping people for ransom — a challenge that President Bola Tinubu has struggled to address since he was elected in 2023 after promising to end the crisis.

The armed groups were previously confined to regions farther north, but analysts say they have moved their operations south as military pressure and territorial competition among groups ramp up.

In the past few months, Nigeria has been in the crosshairs of the U.S. government, which has accused the Nigerian government of not protecting Christians, although attacks affect both Christians and Muslims.

The accusation has resulted in a security partnership between both countries that has involved U.S. strikes targeting armed groups in Nigerian territories in December, as well as presence of a small team of American forces in Nigeria.