No fewer than 43 people have been killed in fresh attacks by armed herders on communities in Gwer West and Apa Local Government Areas of Benue State.
The attacks, which occurred on Sunday evening, have thrown residents into mourning and renewed calls for urgent government action amid rising concerns of what church leaders now describe as a “calculated and coordinated effort to wipe out Tiv communities.”
A local source in Apa, who gave his name as Tony, said the herders stormed Edikwu Ankpali around the same time they invaded Tse Antswam, a suburb of Naka town in Gwer West.
“Over 25 persons at Edikwu Ankpali, in Apa LGA were killed yesterday (Sunday) and the corpses will soon be buried,” Tony told the press on Monday.
In Gwer West, the Ter Nagi, Chief Daniel Abomtse, confirmed the attack, stating that the suspected herders came in guerrilla fashion and opened fire on villagers. He said 18 corpses were recovered as of Monday morning.
“Many people sustained varied degree of injuries,” he added. “In fact, the way some people were butchered, I doubt if they will survive. Search is still on because many ran into the bush with gun wounds and some also entered the well to escape the herdsmen.”
According to him, the village attacked lies directly opposite a military checkpoint along the Naka–Makurdi Road.
The Chairman of Gwer West LGA, Victor Ormini, expressed frustration over the continued bloodshed. “Instead of abating, it’s getting worse. Over 14 corpses have been recovered,” Ormini lamented.
In Apa LGA, the Chairman, Adams Ocheiga, also confirmed the incident.
When contacted, the Benue State Police Command spokesperson, DSP Udeme Edet, confirmed the attacks but did not give a casualty figure.
“This is to confirm that there was an attack yesterday at Naka and Apa, and to let you know that tactical teams have been deployed and already on ground and are on top of the situation,” she said.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Catholic Diocesan Priests Association (NCDPA), Makurdi Diocese, has raised the alarm over what it calls a systematic targeting of Tiv communities and the Catholic Church.
At a press conference on Sunday, the Chairman of the association, Revd. Fr. Joseph Beba, revealed that over 50 people had been killed and 15 parishes forced to shut down within just one month.
“Among those affected are Catholic priests, and this has led to the closure of 15 parishes in Makurdi Diocese alone,” Fr. Beba stated.
He accused security forces of complicity, citing several incidents where attacks occurred close to military checkpoints without intervention.
He narrated how Revd. Fr. Solomon Atongo of St. John’s Quasi Parish, Jimba, was shot just 500 kilometres from a checkpoint at Tse Orbiam, yet the stationed personnel failed to act.
Other affected areas include Tse Orbiam, Ahume, Jimba, Nagi-Camp, Aondoana, Yelewata, and Abegana. The priests said the attacks claimed the lives of women, children, and even a pregnant woman.
“These acts are inhumane, barbaric, and a gross violation of the sanctity and dignity of human life,” they said.
The clergy believe the attacks may be linked to Bishop Wilfred Anagbe’s recent international testimonies on the persecution of Christians in Nigeria. They said the Bishop’s home village, Aondoana, was attacked on 25 May, forcing nuns and clergy into hiding.
They cited another attack on 26 May in Nagi-Camp, just five kilometres from a military base at Agagbe, and another on Yelewata in Guma LGA, where an entire family was killed and Revd. Fr. Jonathan Ukuma narrowly escaped death.
“We are not sure whose side the military is on. Their behaviour raises serious suspicions of complicity,” the priests declared.
They urged Governor Hyacinth Alia to act decisively, describing the ongoing attacks as “ethnic cleansing” of the Tiv people. They also called on President Bola Tinubu to declare full-scale war against what Governor Alia has described as “foreign invaders.”
“Failure to act decisively will be seen as indifference or complicity. To be silent is to die twice,” they warned.
They demanded compensation for victims, resettlement of displaced persons, and called on Nigerian youths to be ready to defend their faith and farmlands within the law.
“The right to self-defence is inalienable for all citizens,” the clergy added.
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