SEVENTEEN people have been confirmed dead in fresh attacks by suspected militias in Gbagir community, Ukum Local Government Area (LGA) of Benue State.
The latest assault occurred on Thursday on the Sankera axis of the LGA and simultaneously in neighbouring Logo LGA.
According to the Benue State Police Command, suspected militia launched a coordinated attack in Gbagir, killing five people before security operatives engaged them.
The command, in a statement on Friday, April 18, stated that while the operation was ongoing, another group attacked Logo, where 12 more persons were murdered, bringing the death toll to 17.
The command spokesperson, Sewuese Anene, said the Commissioner of Police, Steve H. Yabanet, had deployed tactical teams to the area in response to intelligence on an impending attack.
“Information was received that a large number of suspected militia had invaded the Sankera axis of Benue state with the intention to attack communities around Gbagir, Ukum Local Government Area. Upon receipt of this report, the Commissioner of Police, Benue State Police Command, CP. Steve H. Yabanet FCID, psc (+) ordered tactical teams to move to the area and join forces with police officers on ground and other security agencies to forestall the attack.
“Following this order, a team of officers moved to the area and engaged them. While the attackers were being repelled in the early hours of today, they shot sporadically at unsuspecting farmers as they came across them. Five (5) persons were recovered at the Gbagir area and taken to the hospital, where they were confirmed dead.
“Unfortunately, an unsuspected simultaneous attack was carried out in Logo, where twelve (12) persons were killed before the arrival of the police, making a total of seventeen persons. However, security agencies within the Sankera axis are still engaging the bandits as they retreat to the forest around the Taraba axis,” the statement read in part.
The police also cautioned against the spread of unverified information on social media, warning it could inflame tensions in the already volatile region.
The renewed attacks in Sankera came barely 48 hours after suspected herders launched brutal attacks on three communities—Emichi, Odudaje, and Okpamaju—in Otukpo LGA, southern Benue.
The onslaught also followed the killing of 11 persons at Otobi community in the same local government area the previous night.
According to Channels Television, the Otukpo LGA Chairman, Maxwell Ogiri, confirmed the attacks, noting that the invaders struck while police officers were still at the palace of the Ochidoma, addressing the previous day’s massacre.
He noted that three residents sustained injuries, while women and children fled their homes out of fear.
Usman Mustapha is a solution journalist with International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: umustapha@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M