At least 19 people have been brutally murdered in a fresh wave of attacks by armed herdsmen in the Kwande Local Government Area (LGA) of Benue State, with 16 of the victims’ bodies dumped in the River Katsina-Ala.
According to sources in the area, the violence began on Saturday evening when 16 individuals from Mbandwe Ward were ambushed along Kashimbila Road while returning home.
They were killed, and their remains were thrown into the river. The assailants struck again on Monday afternoon in Boguwa, Kumakua Council Ward, killing three more people and setting homes and food barns ablaze.
A local source, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that several individuals remain missing as residents flee to Jato Aka and other safer locations.
The President-General of Mzough U Tiv (MUT) Worldwide, Comptroller of Prison Iorbee Ihagh (retd.), corroborated the attacks, stating that all six Council Wards in Turan, Kwande LGA, have been overrun by armed herdsmen. He urged President Bola Tinubu to deploy additional troops to the affected areas to restore security.
Efforts to reach the Benue State Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Catherine Anene, and the Director General of Internal Security, Israel Gbawuam, for comments were unsuccessful at the time of this report.