Nigeria: Nomads, Farmers’ Clashes Leave Fifty-Six Dead

Deadly clashes between nomads and farmers in Benue and Plateau States have risen to 56 people. A government spokesman said on Saturday that after the twin attacks, the dead toll could rise further as searchand-rescue operations continue. Police spokesperson Anene Sewuese Catherine said in a statement, “a large number of suspected militia had invaded” a region of Benue State overnight. The attack came amid a resurgence of deadly clashes between herders and farmers, a conflict that has killed hundreds over recent years due to water sources and grazing land. Security forces were deployed and as the assailants were being repelled in the early hours, they shot sporadically. Reliable sources say, some of the killer gunmen parade as either vigilantes claiming to protect their people or gun-toting marauding herdsmen. The killings that ensue daily have caused pain and suffering for residents and indigenes of these States. Though the clashes are not new, recent killings are the worst since the 2015 New Year onslaught that claimed over 300 lives in the region. Almost every day comes with a new story of sorrow, tears and blood. In a public broadcast, the Benue State Governor, Rev. Fr Hyacinth Alia, at the weekend stated that the search was still going on for other bodies. Between Saturday and Sunday, more dead bodies were discovered in the surrounding bushes and farms where some of the fleeing wounded had died, just as some of the critically injured were still at the hospitals. He l...