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Nigerian police say new clashes in the country's troubled central region have killed at least 12 people.

Police in Plateau state say dozens of gunmen believed to be Muslim Fulani herdsmen attacked at least three villages in the early hours of Thursday.

A military spokesman says troops killed two of the attackers as they tried to flee. Police say they have detained at least 29 people responsible for the attacks, including a police officer based in the capital, Abuja.

The villages are located near the state capital of Jos, which has been plagued by violence between Muslims and Christians.

On Thursday, police in neighboring Bauchi state reported an outburst of religious violence that killed at least four people.

Both Plateau and Bauchi states are located in Nigeria's so-called middle belt, where the mostly Muslim north meets the mainly Christian south.

Nigeria's 140 million people are divided roughly evenly between Christians and Muslims.

Periodic clashes between the groups, mostly in and around Jos, have killed thousands of people in recent years.

Article by VOA News