Tensions have heightened in Benue State following a wave of fresh attacks on three communities in the Otukpo Local Government Area, reportedly carried out by suspected Fulani herdsmen.
The affected communities Emichi, Odudaje, and Okpamaju came under siege in the early hours of Wednesday, barely a day after a brutal assault in Otobi, also within the same LGA, that left 13 people dead and over 50 homes razed.
These renewed attacks have sparked widespread fear, with women and children fleeing the affected areas in search of safety, leaving only young men behind. According to local authorities, three people sustained injuries during the coordinated assaults.
The Chairman of Otukpo Local Government Area, Maxwell Ogiri, confirmed the attacks in a statement released Thursday. He disclosed that the gunmen launched their assault while the Benue State Commissioner of Police was still at the Ochidoma Palace, addressing the fallout from the Otobi killings. The coordinated timing of the attacks has raised serious concerns about the emboldened tactics of the assailants.
“Only young men were left in the communities when the attackers arrived. The swift intervention by combined security forces forced them to retreat, but none were apprehended at the scene,” Ogiri noted.
In response to the violence, Governor Hyacinth Alia announced that three suspects have been taken into custody in connection with the Otobi killings. Speaking at the Benue State Government House in Makurdi, the governor condemned the attacks and urged security agencies to intensify efforts to bring all perpetrators to justice.
Governor Alia also revealed that the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, has pledged to deploy additional security assets to the state, particularly to volatile regions such as Otukpo. He assured residents that a more robust security presence would soon be felt in the affected communities.
Meanwhile, Kennedy Angbo, the representative for Otukpo-Akpa Constituency in the Benue State House of Assembly, provided updates on the casualties. He confirmed that nine bodies were recovered on Tuesday night, with another found in a remote area, and more discovered on Wednesday morning—raising the death toll to at least 11 in that incident alone.
These attacks occurred against the backdrop of a renewed appeal from the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), representing the 19 Northern States and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). CAN has called on both federal and state governments to urgently implement trauma healing and recovery programs for victims of insurgency and communal violence, particularly in Plateau and Benue States.
As communities continue to mourn their dead and count their losses, there is a growing call for urgent, lasting solutions to the rising wave of violence across Benue State.
