Fulani Herdsmen Kill Nine in Tiv Community

NINE persons have been killed in Sarki-Kudu village of Ibi Local Government Council of Taraba State following a reprisal attack said to have been carried out by Fulani herdsmen on the Tiv community.

The incident, which took place yesterday forced many living in the area to relocate to nearby Plateau State and some local government councils within Taraba.

Confirming the report, the council chairman, Illiya Mohammed, said no fewer than seven persons were killed in the attack. Security chiefs in the state, according to him, have been informed “and the council is living no stone unturned to stop the crisis from escalating to nearby councils.”

The crisis had compelled the commissioner of police to relocate his office to the area, which is observed to be one of the volatile spots in the state.

Speaking to The Guardian, the police commissioner, through the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the state, Joseph Kwaji, also disclosed that the attack was a reprisal. Unlike the council boss who said that seven persons were killed in the upheaval, the PPRO confirmed nine deaths.

There were conflicting reports on casualty figures at the time of filing this report.

A numbers of persons were also said to have sustained varying degrees of injuries and are presently undergoing medical treatments at various health centres in the area.

An eyewitness, who spoke on telephone, said the people, especially the Tiv community in the area, were taken by surprise by the herdsmen who had been terrorising the local council, as well as the entire southern zone of the state.

The eyewitness, who claimed to have narrowly escaped the attack, expressed dissatisfaction with the number of security operatives in the area, saying it was nothing to write home about.

Source:

Guardian Newspaper