Herdsmen attack Christian community leaving six dead

The Christian community of Wereng in Nigeria’s Plateau State is in a state of fear after a renewed attack by suspected Fulani herdsmen left six people dead.

On the night of October 5, gunmen invaded the community, killing a local chief and five others and injuring three, according to CSI’s local partner Emancipation Center for Crisis Victims in Nigeria (ECCVN).

Three members of one family were among the victims who also included a child.

“When we saw the attackers, we first thought they were vigilantes because they were wearing boots and security kits like community police, until they started shooting at us,” said Kim Francis, 32, one of the injured. “They kept shooting and picking their expended bullet shells as they moved,” added Francis who was shot in the leg.

Two other survivors, Lyop David, 35, and Mary Francis, 65, were shot in the thigh and leg respectively and are currently receiving medical treatment. The women expressed anxiety over how they would manage to pay their medical bills.

Community under attack

Wereng had been under siege from the Fulani for over 10 years and more than 30 people have been killed, according to the Sahara Reporters newspaper.

Previous onslaughts on the Christian community by Islamist militias have included ambushes and the destruction of crops ready to be harvested. As recently as September 4, herders invaded the community with their cattle and destroyed crops in 28 separate plots of land.

Survivors of the latest attack told ECCVN that they had received threats on social media and in text messages that their land would continue to be subjected to invasions by Fulani militias.

“We are sick and tired of all this; for how long shall we be killed with no action taken? But one thing I know is that God will fight for us”, said local resident Noro Jatau.