Tag: Herdsmen

  • Scores Feared Killed As Suspected Herdsmen Attack Benue IDPs

    Scores Feared Killed As Suspected Herdsmen Attack Benue IDPs

    The Benue State Police Command has confirmed another attack on one of the Internal Displaced Person (IDP) camps at Agan in the Makurdi Local Government Area of Benue with many killed by suspected herdsmen.

    The police spokesperson, DSP Sewuese Anene in a telephone conversation with our correspondent in Benue State, confirmed last night attack which she said claimed many lives at the IDP camps but the casualty figure is yet to be determined.

    DSP Sewuese further added that the commissioner of police, Wale Abasse will visit the scene of the attack very early in the morning to clarify what happened, the casualty figures but response team has already been deployed to the area.

    This attack followed the killing of a traditional ruler in Apa Local Government Area of Benue earlier in the week along with many others before the attackers moved to the Otukpo Local Government Area on Wednesday, killing 46 persons including a 33-year-old son of the local government chairman and now this at an IDP camp Makurdi, the state capital.

  • Scores killed as suspected herdsmen attack Enugu community

    Scores killed as suspected herdsmen attack Enugu community

    A yet-to-be-ascertained number of people have been reportedly killed in the troubled Ebor, Eha-Amufu community in Isi-Uzo Local Government Area of Enugu State on Sunday by armed herdsmen.

    Security sources told our correspondent that the invaders who outnumbered the soldiers and local vigilantes, launched the attack on early Sunday morning, adding that several people were killed.

    “As I speak to you, we are combing bushes in search of the bodies of those killed. I can’t tell now the exact number of people killed.

    “From the report I received, the armed herdsmen and their collaborators from Benue State communities launched the attack around 5:30 am to 6 am this Sunday morning. Before we got there, several people have been killed.

    “We are just a few soldiers here and where we are based is a little bit far from the community. There are no other security operatives from other security agencies here in Eha-Amufu helping except the local vigilantes. They (vigilantes) first engaged them but the invading armed herdsmen outnumbered them,” a security source said.

    A community leader, who gave his name as Ogbuabor Samuel, confirmed the attack.

    “As I speaking to you, the invading armed herdsmen are still shooting. Several people have been killed, at least we have recovered the bodies of 10 people.”

    Blaming the local government chairman, whom he described as playing politics with the lives of Eha-Amufu because of the 2023 general elections.

    “The chairman of the Isi-Uzo local government area is playing politics with our lives. He didn’t want to tell the governor the true facts of what is happening in our community. He is not supporting the local vigilantes and other local security.

    “A few weeks ago, he dissolved all the local vigilantes formed by Eha-Amufu communities yet he hardly visit the affected communities. We need the government to declare a security emergency in Eha-Amufu, especially in Ebor, Umujiovu, Mgbuji and Agu-Amede communities. Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi should do something drastic. His government should stop politicising the situation in our place.

    “They should stop fabricating stories that our people are collaborating in our situations. That is a fallacy and diverts attention from the real issues. Agala people in Benue State have joined forces with armed herdsmen attacking and killing our people every day. They have sacked several villages and occupied them. They have destroyed our people’s livelihood. Properties worth millions have been destroyed and those in political positions in Enugu State are playing politics with it?

    “Since these recent attacks started in October, we haven’t seen policemen. You can only see police if their commissioner is coming to witness the destruction. And when the commissioner goes back to Enugu, he starts dishing out false narratives. Where are the tactical squad and operational assets of the police he told Nigerians through the media that he had deployed to Eha-Amufu?

    “We want to know who the security agencies in Enugu State are protecting their interest. The invading armed herdsmen? Could it be that the security chiefs in Enugu State are in the state to give cover to armed herdsmen?” he lamented.

    Recall that the last attack on Ebor and Umujiovu communities on December 8, 2022, claimed 25 lives but the Enugu State Police Command told the media that only four people were killed.

    After that very attack, because it was inside Eha-Amufu town, people fled their homes. So many of them ran to neighbouring communities in Ebonyi State and some to the Enugu capital. So many have been forced into Internally Displaced Persons’ abodes.

    Meanwhile, the Enugu State Police Command has confirmed the attack although without details of casualty.

    The Command’s spokesman, DSP Daniel Ndukwe, who confirmed the latest attack to our correspondent in a text message, said, “sketchy report at my disposal shows that there was an attack. But the assailants were repelled by a Joint Police/Army team, that is currently trailing them.”

  • Expect our impending attacks – Suspected herdsmen write Ogun communities

    Expect our impending attacks – Suspected herdsmen write Ogun communities

    Suspected killer herdsmen have written to residents of some communities in Ogun state, threatening to invade their house in a reprisal attack.

    The unknown herdsmen in the notice letter of attack, a copy which was obtained by our correspondent, threw fear into the minds of the residents of Asa, Agbon, Ibeku and Oja-Odan communities in the Yewa-North Local Government Area of Ogun State.

    The latter was reportedly written on Saturday.

    The herdsmen, in the letter written in English and Hausa languages, informed the residents of their intention of attacking the communities through the notice letter reportedly pasted on the walls in some strategic places within the communities.

    The herdsmen told the leaders of the communities to expect their visitation to their homes between December and January.

    The notice reads, “Attention! Attention!! Attention!! to all following communities; Asa, Agbon, lbeku, Oja-odan and its environs.

    “You think you can send away our people from the land they bought in Nigeria, our fathers land, you kill our people, you kill their cows, you take over all their properties, you think you can go scot-free. It’s high time we come for revenge.

    “All the above mention communities leaders should prepare for the war between December and January. We are coming to take back our father’s property.”

    When contacted the state Police Public Relations Officer, Abimbola Oyeyemi confirmed the development .

    Oyeyemi said he had seen the letter, as he assured the concerned communities of the command’s commitment to unravel those behind the hideous act.

    “Well, I saw the letter purportedly written by a baseless group. We believe it is a baseless group that wrote the letter. We are not losing any sleep because no information is too small to take note of.

    “We are not neglecting it. We are working on it to unravel those behind it,” he said.

  • Suspected Armed Herdsmen Kill Four Persons, Injure Scores in Benue Community

    Suspected Armed Herdsmen Kill Four Persons, Injure Scores in Benue Community

    By Isaac Kertyo, Makurdi

    Suspected Armed Herdsmen have reportedly attacked Ayilamo community in Logo Local Government Area of Benue State, killing four persons on the spot while several others are said to have been severely injured.

    Investigation by Day Break indicated that the incident occurred in the night when people were asleep, where the herdsmen started shooting from one house to another, killing at least four persons and injuring scores.

    According to informed sources, many people have fled the aforementioned community for fear of being killed by the attackers.

    Meanwhile, corpses of those massacred have been deposited at the mortuary while the injured are receiving treatment at an undisclosed health facility.

    An indigene of the area, Dr Torngee Malu decried continued attacks on the community by herdsmen, disclosing that the situation has brought setback to the community even as he contended that many have abandoned their farm land for fear of the unknown.

    Dr Malu said that the situation will result to severe hunger if urgent steps are not taken to avert future occurrence. He appealed to the government to provide security to the community to enable the displaced persons return to their ancestral homes and continue with farming activities.

    Efforts to meet the Police Public Relations Officer Benue State Police Command, DSP Sewuese Anene as at time of filing this report were unsuccessful.

  • BNSG to Review Security Strategies to Tackle Armed Herdsmen, Banditry and Communal crisis

    BNSG to Review Security Strategies to Tackle Armed Herdsmen, Banditry and Communal crisis

    By Isaac Kertyo, Makurdi

    Benue State Government has concluded plans to review its security strategies towards tackling armed herdsmen, local Banditry as well as communal crisis for development to thrive.

    Governor Samuel Ortom made this disclosure at the Government House Makurdi during a press conference following renewed attacks and killings in Guma Local Government Area and other communities in the state by armed herdsmen.

    Ortom asserted that this became necessary due to the incompetence of the APC led Federal Government in tackling insecurity in the country, stressing that the Presidency has demonstrated lack of political will to bring the situation under control.

    ” The decision becomes necessary due to failure of the Federal Government to use its apparatus to protect Benue Communities from herdsmen attacks”, stressing that his administration won’t tolerate this heinous act any longer”.

    The Governor lamented the plight of over one million people who are in the Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, camps due to continued attacks on farmers by herders militia.

    He called on the Federal Government to redeem its Ten Billion Naira pledge it made through Vice President Yemi Osinbajo for the resettlement of the IDPs in the state.

  • Suspected herdsmen Again Kill Eight Persons in Benue State

    Suspected herdsmen Again Kill Eight Persons in Benue State

    By Isaac Kertyo, Makurdi

    Suspected herdsmen have reportedly attacked two Communities in Guma local Government Area of Benue State, killing eight Persons.

    Findings showed that four of the victims were massacred in Iye while the other four who were fisherman were murdered at the Akem River located within the same community.

    The Gunmen were said to have stormed the area in the early hours of the day during which they opened fire on the victims killing them on the spot.

    Day Break learned that many people who have fled the area for fear of being attacked are currently taking refuge in the neighboring communities.

    The attack on Iye community is coming on the heels of an attack on Ahentse community in Nzorov Council Ward of Guma Local Government Area where five Persons were allegedly killed by unknown Gunmen.

    The Police Public Relations Officer, Benue State Police Command, DSP Sewuese Annene could not be reached for comments as at the time of filing this report.

  • Herdsmen raze Benue monarch’s hometown

    Herdsmen raze Benue monarch’s hometown

    By Joyce Babayeju

    Suspected herdsmen have reportedly burnt down Abomste village, the home town of the Chairman, Gwer West Local Government Tradition Rulers Council, the Ter Tyoshin, Chief Daniel Abomste.

    The marauders were also reported to have sacked Sengev District, the home town of the lawmaker representing Gwer/Gwer West federal constituency in the National Assembly, Mr Mark Gbillah, as well as razed houses and farmlands in several communities and districts in the LGA.

    The Ter Tyoshin, Abomste, who raised the alarm, yesterday, lamented that the last one week had witnessed the influx of herdsmen into his domain forcing his subjects to flee their homes while the marauders engaged in burning down people’s houses and property.

    He said: “In the past one week, there has been an influx of Fulani herdsmen into Gwer West LGA. Even the farms that are situated along Naka-Agagbe road cannot be accessed anymore.

    “As I speak with you, we have not recorded any death but they have burnt down my hometown, Abomste village, Mbachohom Council Ward. They did that while I was away on a medical check-up.

    “Aside from my district, Sahev/Ukusu district, Tyoughakee district, Gbange/Tongov, and Sengev, which is Mark Gbillah’s council ward as well as Ngambeshin district have all been sacked.

    “All these districts I have mentioned are made up of villages and are on the coastal fringes of River Benue. People are no longer living there. The only area you can temporarily see people at intervals is Agagbe, which is having a Platoon unit of Operation Whirl Stroke.

    “And then you can also see pockets of few persons in the roadside village called Nagi. From Nagi to my village is one and a half kilometres behind. So it is a terrible thing and I do not know what to say. It is as bad as that. Several villages have been sacked.

    “People have run away from those areas. They have deserted their properties and the armed herdsmen are burning those properties. The inhabitants of all these places I have mentioned are all taking refuge in Naka town.

    “Even Naka town is threatened, it is not safe. They have advanced two or three kilometres close to the town. It is as bad as that. And most villages on the Makurdi-Naka road have also been deserted.

    “The worst thing is that we cannot even go and clear our land to farm because from Naka town to those districts is within the range of about 35 kilometres. You can imagine that kind of space and no human being is leaving there again.”

    Abomste insisted that “there is no need for the military establishment within the state to condone this kind of heartlessness. If the military cannot clamp down on these bandits who should be treated as terrorists it is very unfortunate.”

    Efforts to reach the Benue State Police Public Relations Officer, Catherine Anene, was unsuccessful.

  • BREAKING: Terror herdsmen slaughter scores of villagers in Gombe

    BREAKING: Terror herdsmen slaughter scores of villagers in Gombe

    Suspected terror herdsmen have slaughtered scores of villagers in various parts of Billiri Local Government Area of Gombe State while over six survivals with life threatening injuries are currently receiving treatment in the hospital.

    Some of the villages which came under attack by the terror group includes, Kolokkwannin, Poshulte, Pokuli, Pandikame, Ayaba, Popandi, Kalmai and Banganje district

    A local source who spoke with NewsBand said that the attack which started since 6th December 2021 lasted till 9th January 2022 with the state government doing nothing to arrest the situation.

    The local source further alleged that state media houses have been barred from airing the attacks and even some concerned individuals that spoke to private media outlets about the disturbing situation are facing harassment from the state government.

    At the time of filing this report, security operatives are yet to be deployed to the affected communities.

  • Security Operatives intercept large number of Kwara bound herdsmen

    Security Operatives intercept large number of Kwara bound herdsmen

    A joint task force comprising operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, the Nigerian Army and the police, on Wednesday, intercepted a large number of suspected Fulani herdsmen coming to settle down in Kwara State.

    The spokesman of the defence corps, Kwara State Command, Babawale Zaid Afolabi, disclosed this in a statement in Ilorin on Thursday.

    According to Babawale, “On Wednesday, 04/08/2021, at about 0700hours, suspected Fulani herdsmen were intercepted at Erin-Ile, a border town of Kwara state through a joint effort of the NSCDC, Army and the Police.

    “The herdsmen, who were in a large number with some of their cattle, were stopped at Erin-Ile-Offa axis end of the Kwara-Osun state boundary on their way to Ajasse-Ipo, a town in the Ifelodun Local Government Area of the state.”

    The spokesman said the herdsmen and their cows were going to Ajasse-Ipo, a town with a large concentration of the Fulani in the state.

    “The suspected herdsmen were later led to Ajasse-Ipo by the JTF where further background check and profiling was carried out by the appropriate security operatives,” the spokesman stated.

    Daybreak reports that in the meantime, the herdsmen have been allowed to remain in Ajasse-Ipo pending the time when all necessary actions would be taken and security beefed up in and around the town.

  • Buhari Supports open grazing, asks AGF to recover land for Herdsmen

    Buhari Supports open grazing, asks AGF to recover land for Herdsmen

    President Muhammadu Buhari has given approval to the return of the open grazing practised during the 1st Republic where herdsmen used designated grazing routes to move their cattle to several parts of the country.

    To this end, the President said he had asked the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, to begin the process of recovering land from persons who have converted cattle grazing routes for their personal use.

    Buhari said this during an interview with Arise Television which was aired on Thursday.

    The President said the grazing routes were designated in the 1st Republic when “Nigerians use to obey laws” but those routes had been converted.

    Buhari was reacting to a question on the decision by 17 southern governors to ban open grazing.

    The AGF had kicked against the declaration by the governors, adding that it was like northern governors banning spare part trading, a job that is synonymous with southerners.

    When asked if he agreed with the AGF’s position, Buhari laughingly responded, “You want me to contradict my attorney-general?”

    Explaining further, he said, “What I did was ask him to go and dig the gazette of the 1st Republic when people were obeying laws. There were cattle routes and grazing areas. Cattle routes were for when they (herdsmen) are moving up country, north to south or east to west, they had to go through there.

    “If you allow your cattle to stray into any farm, you are arrested. The farmer is invited to submit his claims. The khadi or the judge will say pay this amount and if you can’t the cattle is sold. And if there is any benefit, you are given and people were behaving themselves and in the grazing areas, they built dams, put windmills in some places there were even veterinary departments so that the herders are limited. Their route is known, their grazing area is known.

    “But I am telling you, this rushing to the centre (sic) so I asked for the gazette to make sure that those who encroached on these cattle routes and grazing areas will be dispossessed in law and try to bring some order back into the cattle grazing.”

    He also lamented the style and utterances of Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, who had not only implemented an aggressive anti-open grazing law but had accused Buhari of failing to take actions against herdsmen because he is also a member of the Fulani herders.

    Buhari said indeed, he is a Fulani man but Ortom was being unfair to him. He said he had told Ortom that the herdsmen perpetrating the attacks are not the Nigerian ones.

    The President further explained that the Tivs, which form the majority in Benue, and the Fulanis had been engaged in cultural conflicts for a long time.

    He added, “The problem is trying to understand the culture of the cattle rearers. There is a cultural difference between the Tivs and the Fulanis. So, the governor of Benue said I am not disciplining the cattle rearers because I am one of them.

    “I cannot say I am not one of them but he is being very unfair to me and I told him that the Nigerian cattle rearer was not carrying anything more than a stick sometime with a machete to cut some trees and feed his cattle but those sophisticated ones move with AK 47.

    “So, from other areas, people rush to Nigeria you know and Fulanis from Mauritania and Central Africa look the same so they feel they are the Nigerian ones and I assure you that we are trying to resuscitate these cattle routes, grazing areas and make them accountable.”