April saw a catalogue of attacks take place on Christian communities in Nigeria by Muslim Fulani herdsmen. The disputes can be religious in intent, but the attacks are not always motivated by clashes of faith. They are often brutal and involve arson, physical attacks or abductions.
Two Christians were decapitated in Benue State on 13 April, and earlier another group of herdsmen in Plateau State shot a Christian farmer dead.
A Christian couple who are members of the Church of Christ in Nations congregation were attacked with machetes on 26 April, leaving the husband with serious injuries. They were riding a motorcycle when Fulani herdsmen ambushed them.
Twelve Christians were killed and a couple kidnapped from their wedding ceremony in further attacks in April. Other church members who were unable to escape were also taken as the herdsmen descended on the service.
In late April, herdsmen killed two people, kidnapped another and burned down 25 houses as well as a church building that included the pastor’s home, in attacks on predominantly Christian areas in north-central Nigeria. The ransom for the return of the kidnapped victim, who is married with two children, was put at 30 million naira (US$76,565).
Crusade?
Nine Christians were killed, including two young children and a pregnant woman, in a Fulani militant attack on Hura village, Plateau State, on 14 April.
The youngest victim was a three-year-old boy who died beside his pregnant mother, Talatu Daniel, who was also murdered. Others killed in the attack were: Isha-ya Yakubu (5), Gyang Yakubu (16), Sunday Biri (50), and Sunday’s grandson Luka (5). Spino Ka-ma and two unnamed adults were also victims.
Around 28 homes were burnt out or badly damaged in the attack on Hura, which affected most of the families in the village.
Victoria John said: ‘The Fulanis came and almost surrounded the village [with some] shouting ‘Allahu akbar [God is most great], come out, come out!’ amidst gunshots.’
After burials, the surviving women and children began to evacuate the village in a ten-mile trek to another community. With the rainy season soon to arrive, the community leader called for urgent help for these communities who desperately need food and materials to repair their homes.
