(RepublicanDaily.org) – Officials from the central government of Nigeria have reported that armed groups have attacked multiple towns, killing at least 160 people with hundreds of others left wounded.
The Christmas offensive is the bloodiest since May when unidentified attackers slaughtered over a hundred people in villages throughout Plateau.
A local newspaper said that in the six months leading up to October, a total of 421 individuals had been slain in similar assaults. As a result of the fighting, many farmers have fled their homes and farms, contributing to falling economic productivity and excessive food price inflation in Nigeria.
In “senseless and unjustified” assaults that took place over the weekend, the perpetrators burned down the majority of dwellings in seventeen different towns. Based on evidence collected by local authorities and Amnesty International’s field workers, the Nigerian office has documented 140 fatalities in the Christian-dominated Bokkos and Barkin-Ladi districts of Plateau. There was concern that the death toll would be greater since several individuals were still missing.
Although the AP could not independently confirm the allegation, other residents said security authorities delayed almost 12 hours to respond to their cries for assistance.
Herders from the Fulani tribe were held responsible for the attacks, although no group claimed responsibility. The northwest and central regions of the most populous African nation have been embroiled in a decades-long conflict over water and land, which has exacerbated the sectarian division between Christians and Muslims.
Despite the rarity of arrests in such assaults, the Nigerian army announced the start of “clearing operations” to seek culprits with the assistance of other security agencies.
Bola Tinubu has ordered security forces to “scour every length of the zone and catch the criminals.”
Tinubu campaigned on a platform that included his vow to address the country’s security issues, which his predecessor had ignored. He also ordered quick medical attention for the injured and mobilized relief supplies for the surviving.
Nigerian authorities have failed, according to Amnesty International, to stop repeated violent assaults on rural villages in Plateau state. The organization has condemned President Bola Tinubu for making his “empty” campaign pledges to implement long-term security measures to end the violence.
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