On June 13th, over 200 Christians were brutally murdered in coordinated attacks carried out by Fulani militants, in the Nigerian town of Yelewata, in Benue State, northern Nigeria.

The victims were farmers sheltering in a displaced persons center run by a Roman Catholic mission, because they had previously fled violence from extremist groups such as Boko Haram.

Shouting “Allahu Akhbar” (God is great), Fulani militants set fire to the buildings where they were sleeping, and hacked with machetes anyone who tried to escape.

“It was truly gruesome”

Ukuma Jonathan Angbianbee, a local Roman Catholic priest, told Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) association he survived by dropping to the floor as the gunshots began.

“What I saw was truly gruesome. People were slaughtered. Corpses were scattered everywhere, when we heard the shots and saw the militants, we committed our lives to God. This morning, I thank God I am alive”, he said.

According to Angbianbee, “there is no doubt about the identity of the perpetrators. They were undoubtedly Fulani”.

The local clergy explained in a statement provided to ACN that, prior to the attack, the police repelled a Fulani attempt to storm St. Joseph's Church, where 700 displaced people were also sheltered. They then moved to the town’s market square, where the displaced persons center is located.

Earlier that day, six civilians and three soldiers were also killed in separate incidents.

Six days of attacks

Although the most serious attack was that on 13 June in Yelewata, it was preceded by several others.

The first one occurred on 8 June in the village of Udei, when attackers shot dead two farmers and injured another as they worked on their field.

On 11 June, two women were killed as they worked on their land near the village of Tse Ivokor.

The next day, Amos Uorayev, a volunteer with Foundation for Justice Development and Peace, set out with four other youths to recover bodies, only for them to be ambushed and killed.

Furthermore, that same day Fulani militants ambushed a group of Christian farmers in Rigwe Chiefdom, Bassa County, Plateau state. According to local sources, four victims, including a 9-month-old infant, were killed.

All these attacks have left over 200 people dead and more than 6000 displaced.

Call for a real solution

Last Sunday, thousands took the streets of Makurdi to protest the killings, with posters saying: “Listen to us, we are tired, please stop Benue killings!”, and the police fired teargas to disperse them.

Meanwhile, the United Nations have condemned the attacks and called for a comprehensive investigation into the incidents.

Jo Newhouse, spokesperson for Open Doors’ in sub-Saharan Africa said they “condemn in the strongest terms possible the attacks in Benue state”.

“For this pattern of attack on mostly Christian villages to continue without restraint is totally unacceptable. Christians in the Middle Belt of Nigeria need to know their government is willing to do what is needed to secure the safety of all her citizens, regardless of their ethnicity or religion”, she added.

Open Doors will “join the UN in calling for immediate action and a comprehensive investigation”.

They call on the government of Nigeria “to provide protection, by taking robust action to stop violent militant attacks”.

The Christian advocay group also calls “for justice, which includes the fair prosecution of those responsible, and lastly, for restoration by providing restitution, rehabilitation and compensation for survivors and communities”.

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