Benue — No fewer than 30 persons were feared dead in a fresh clash between Fulani herdsmen and native Tiv farmers in Yogbo, Guma Local Government Area of Benue State. This came as the Joint Task Force, JTF, confirmed, yesterday, that 24 sect members were killed in Monday's spate of explosions and shootings in Maiduguri.
Majority of those killed in the bloodbath that erupted Sunday morning in Yogbo were women and children who could not escape before the herdsmen invaded the embattled community.
Vanguard gathered from fleeing residents of the community
who had taken refuge in Makurdi town that the arms wielding herdsmen attacked
Yogbo, a community that is less than 15 minutes drive from Makurdi town, at
about 7am on Sunday when most residents had gone to church.
According to one John Usher who said he escaped with his
wife and three children from the sudden attack, "we never envisaged any
attack on that day, because we have been living in peace with one another for
sometime now.
"We were surprised when the Fulanis suddenly attacked
us, slaughtering over 30 women and children who were at home when many families
had gone to church; we heard screams of women and children being murdered by
the Fulanis who quickly disappeared after carrying out the dastardly
attack".
He added: "Given the timing of this latest attack on
Tiv farmers, it has become worrisome that anytime a year is coming to an end,
these ugly incidents always occur, leading to the spilling of blood and the
wanton destruction of property and farm yields of Tiv farmers by the invading
Fulani herdsmen. It is just unfortunate".
Meanwhile, at press time, hundreds of indigenous Tiv farmers
were seen fleeing to Makurdi town, while some were heading to Gbajimba from the
troubled community while security operatives were also seen patrolling parts of
the town.
When contacted, the Benue state Police Public Relations
Officer, PPRO, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Daniel Ezeala confirmed that
men of the command have been deployed to the troubled spot to forestall further
bloodbath in the area.
Vanguard recalls that attacks on Tiv communities by the
herdsmen had, in the last few years, led to deaths of hundreds of persons
especially in the border communities between Benue and Nasarawa states.
Efforts by both Benue and Nasarawa state governments and the
Sultan of Sokoto to find lasting solution to the crisis have yielded little or
no results in the last few months.
Recently, the governors of Benue and Nasarawa states also
signed a peace accord at Yelwata, a border town between the two states to end
the incessant bloodbath.
24 suspected
terrorists, 2 others killed in Maiduguri multiple blasts
Meanwhile, 24 suspected terrorists have been confirmed
killed in last Monday's clash with members of the JTF in Gwange, Zannari and
Gomari Costain areas of Maiduguri, while two others believed to be members of
the JTF were killed by the terrorists.
But the Task Force in Borno State said, yesterday, that no
member of JTF or civilian was killed during the encounter, insisting that about
24 suspected Boko Haram fighters were killed in different parts of Maiduguri
metropolis.
A statement signed by the JTF spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel
Sagir Musa and made available to newsmen in Maiduguri, yesterday, said the Boko
Haram sect members attacked JTF locations in Zannari ward and Lagos Street
along Gwange general area on Monday night where rocket propelled grenades and
improvised explosive devices were used by the insurgents.
According to the statement: "The terrorists used
civilian homes as launching areas for the attacks at different times of the
night of Monday, October 15, 2012. All the attacks were repelled; 24 Boko Haram
terrorists were killed".
The JTF spokesman claimed that no civilian casualty was
recorded but added that a soldier was wounded during the attack.
He said: "One RPG purpose machine gun, 7 AK 47 riffles,
1 FNC riffle, 24 assorted empty magazines, 950 assorted ammunition, two
pistols, large quantity of assorted Improvised Explosives Device (IED)
materials and several bows, arrows and cutlasses were recovered from the
attackers.
The atmosphere in Maiduguri has been normalized since the
early hours of Tuesday(yesterday) as people are going about their normal
businesses." Musa warned residents to desist from allowing their homes to
be used as launching pads for attacks on troops and civilians, saying such
action would be dealt with appropriately.
