Blood flowed again in Benue State on Thursday as suspected herdsmen launched a fresh attack on Agan community in Makurdi, the Benue State capital.
NATIONAL POST reports that the attack occurred as Governor Hyacinth Alia celebrated his second term anniversary.
Several persons are feared dead and many others injured following the deadly attack.
Sources said the attackers stormed the area around 6:00 pm on Thursday, shooting sporadically and setting houses ablaze.
Agan is located just a few minutes from the heart of Makurdi.
As the attack persisted without any security intervention, residents were forced to flee for their lives.
This came barely 24 hours after traditional rulers in Benue State issued a fresh 14-day ultimatum to nomadic herders and suspected terrorists, demanding that they vacate the state’s farmlands or face severe consequences.
The directive was jointly declared by the Tor Tiv and Chairman of the Benue State Traditional Council, His Royal Majesty Prof. James Iorzua Ayatse, and the Och’Idoma, His Royal Majesty Chief John Elaigwu Odogbo, on behalf of the Benue State Traditional Council.
The announcement was made during a Town Hall Meeting at the New Banquet Hall of the Government House, Makurdi.
The event, part of activities marking Governor Hyacinth Alia’s second year in office, was convened by the office of the Technical Adviser to the Governor on Media, Publicity, and Strategic Communications, Solomon Iorpev.
Addressing the gathering, the traditional rulers decried the worsening insecurity across the state, particularly the killings allegedly carried out by armed militias suspected to be Fulani herdsmen.
“Due to the alarming escalation of violent attacks, in which innocent indigenous residents are being gruesomely murdered in their homes, we are issuing a 14-day ultimatum to all nomadic herders and terrorist elements to leave Benue lands immediately,” the traditional council declared.
“We can no longer fold our arms while our people are slaughtered without justification. This is a matter of survival for our communities,” they emphasized.
Our correspondent reports that hundreds of people have been murdered in Benue, with thousands displaced by the rampaging herdsmen in the past weeks.