10 Killed in Benue, Taraba Communal Clashes

At least 10 persons were killed in separate attacks Sunday on communities in Benue and Taraba States. Six of them were killed when gunmen attacked five farming villages in Benue State, during which they torched many houses. Four others were killed at Amar village in Karim Lamido Local Government Area of Taraba State as violent clashes erupted between Fulani herdsmen and the Tarok people from Plateau State. "Five Agatu villages were attacked yesterday by suspected Fulani cattle herdsmen who killed
six people," Benue State Police Command's spokesman, Mr. Daniel Ezeala, told AFP.
He said "many houses" were razed during the violence, the latest on mainly ethnic Tiv people, who are predominantly farmers. Local media however said 36 people were killed
in the mayhem.
Ezeala said police and troops had been deployed to the trouble spot.
"The situation is now under control as security forces are patrolling the affected villages to ensure there is no resurgence of violence," he said. In the incident in Taraba State, which claimed the lives of four persons, scores of others sustained varying degrees of injuries in the attack and are currently receiving treatment in various hospitals in Taraba, Gombe and Adamawa States. The herdsmen were said to have invaded the community from Wase Local Government Area of Plateau State to launch a reprisal on the Tarok people resident in the village. There have been incessant clashes between the Fulanis and Tarok in recent times, which have claimed several lives and led to the destruction of property whose value is yet to be ascertained.
Yesterday's clash at Amar village was a spillover of violent clashes between the two groups while hundreds of people were said to have fled the community over fears a recurrence. Wase Local Government Area, where the two groups have been engaging each other in violent clashes, shares a border with Karim Lamido Local Government Area of Taraba State and not a few Taroks engage in farming in the village. Narrating their ordeal, an indigene of the village told THISDAY that the community was caught unawares by the attackers just as he expressed disappointment over the inadequate
security in the area.
Chairman of the local government, Mr. Simeon Mohammed Abbere, who also spoke to THISDAY, expressed worry over inadequate security in the area.