At Least 42 Killed in Weekend Attacks in Nigeria’s Benue State

 

At Least 42 Killed in Weekend Attacks in Nigeria’s Benue State

Suspected herders carried out a series of violence across Gwer West district in Nigeria’s central Benue state, resulting in at least 42 deaths. Local officials reported that 32 bodies were recovered from attacks on Sunday in the villages of Ahume and Aondona, while 10 more people were killed in separate assaults on Saturday in Tyolaha and Tse-Ubiam.

Victor Omnin, chairman of the Gwer West local government, described the situation as dire, stating that authorities are still recovering the victims’ bodies. The violence highlights ongoing conflicts in the region, where disputes over land between herders and farmers are often heightened by ethnic and religious tensions.

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Benue, located in Nigeria’s Middle Belt, is a hotspot of clashes between Muslim herders seeking grazing land and Christian farmers in need of arable land. The region’s tensions are further complicated by overlapping ethnic and religious differences, leading to frequent violence and insecurity.

The office of Benue Governor Hyacinth Iormem Alia also reported that a Catholic priest was shot and remains in critical but stable condition due to the attacks. The violence underscores the ongoing security challenges in Nigeria’s heartland, driven largely by competition over land and resources.