Accra, Jan 24 (IANS): At least six people were reportedly shot dead and seven others wounded by a group of unknown gunmen on a bus in Ghana's Upper East Region.

The victims came under attack on Monday while travelling from Bawku, an urban community in the Upper East Region, to a market centre in a nearby community, Hamza Amadu, Municipal Chief Executive for Bawku confirmed to Xinhua news agency on Tuesday.

Amadu said that the dead included two men and four women, and the wounded are receiving treatment at two nearby hospitals.

"Security has been beefed up with military and police patrols, while a curfew is also in place to control movements at night," the official said.

A combined police-military operation is underway to identify and arrest the perpetrators of the heinous crime, he added.

Located a few kilometres from the border with Burkina Faso, Bawku has recently been enmeshed in armed unrest due to a protracted chieftaincy dispute and other criminal activities.