Fulani Herdsmen Attack: 18 Christians killed in Benue.
Fulani extremists raided a Benue town, killing at least 18 Christians in a midnight raid. The incident took place around 11 p.m. at Mbacher village, a Christian village in Benue State’s Katsina-Ala Area. According to Joseph Achiv, a resident of the settlement, “a group of Fulani Muslims carrying deadly weapons attacked Mbacher village.” “Eighteen Christians were killed during the attack while the villagers were sleeping.”
The chairman of the Katsina-AAla local government council said members received several distress calls and messages from villagers about Fulani terrorists attacking their village. He said
“We made efforts to ensure soldiers were drafted to the area to repel the bandit, but the soldiers got there when the terrorists had left after killing 18 people.”
The spokesperson for the Benue state police command, Catherine Anene, commanded the immediate deployment of security agents in the area for security and investigation. She said, “We have received reports from the Katsina-Ala Division of the police about the attacks in that area and the killing of 18 persons,” she added. “A joint security effort is on as security agents have been deployed there, and investigation into the occurrence of the incident has commenced.”
According to the ‘Open Doors’ 2024 World Watch List (WWL) report, Nigeria remains the deadliest place in the world to follow Christ, with 4,118 people killed for their faith from October 1, 2022, to September 30, 2023. More kidnappings of Christians than in any other country also took place in Nigeria, with 3,300.
Nigeria was also the third highest country in the number of attacks on churches and other Christian buildings such as hospitals, schools, and cemeteries, with 750, according to the report.
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In the 2024 WWL of the countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian, Nigeria was ranked No. 6, as it was in the previous year.
Furthermore, the United Kingdom’s All Party Parliamentary Group for International Freedom or Belief (AAPPG) also reported that “numbering in the millions across Nigeria and the Sahel are predominantly Muslim Fulani, comprising hundreds of clans of many different lineages who do not hold extremist views, but some Fulani do adhere to radical Islamist ideology. The report states that “they adopt a comparable strategy to Boko Haram and ISWAP and demonstrate a clear intent to target Christians and potent symbols of Christian identity.”
Christian leaders in Nigeria have said they believe herdsmen’s attacks on Christian communities in Nigeria’s Middle Belt are inspired by their desire to forcefully take over Christians’ lands and impose Islam, as desertification has made it difficult for them to sustain their herd.
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