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This week in Nigeria; stories of mass killings and blood shed everywhere

1st March 2018;

Location; Rann, Borno state

Boko Haram Militants armed with rocket-propelled grenades and truck-mounted guns attacked a military base in Rann, Borno state. According to reports, they initially overpowered soldiers in a fire fight, but the armed forces later regained control.

International aid workers and about 55,000 internally displaced persons have temporal camps near the military base. The aid workers from UN and Red Cross depend on the army to hand out food supplies to refugees, for transportation and security.

United Nations confirmed that during the incident; four soldiers, four mobile police and three humanitarian workers lost their lives. An unverified number of internally displaced persons were also killed

Some aid agencies reported their midwives and female nurses went missing after the attack, there are fears they might have been abducted. /

Aid agencies are presently evacuating their staff from Rann

Presently the humanitarian organisations are evacuating their staff from the area.

The faith of the IDP(s) right now is unknown, the international aid agencies have been providing them with food and medical treatment.

 

February 26th 2018

Location: Kajuru Local government; Kaduna

An unconfirmed number of people were reportedly killed and several houses set ablaze in Kaduna State following a violent clash between Muslims and Christian youths in the community.

The new Telegraph spoke to some of the affected residents. Recounting his ordeal, Emmanuel Nwayi, an indigene of Enugu State narrated that he lost over N10 million and his hotel that he has been operating for some years now.

They entered into my hotel, vandalised everything and set the place on fire. There is no bank here, all the money we made during the weekend, about N7.6 million was looted when the hoodlums broke into the manager’s room, broke the safe, took the money and burnt the place” he said.

Mustapha Abubakar, another victim lost his brother and his shop containing 110 bags of maize. In his words, “My brother was killed, my car was burnt. My shop with 110 bags of maize was burnt. I don’t know what to do! I don’t know where I am going to start from in this difficult time. I don’t know what we did to deserve these, they have my life” he lamented.

What caused the violence and killings? The details are conflicting. Something about Christian girls marrying Muslims and converting to Islam.  One version claiming that some Christian men went about beating Christian girls who were dating Muslim boys.
Another version claimed that a Christian girl was abducted and converted to Islam. Summarily “na woman cause the fight” 

March 5th 2018;

Benue state Omusu village in Okpokwu Local Government area.

Armed herdsmen invaded the village at about 3:00p.m on Monday, and started shooting sporadically killing everyone in sight and burning down houses.

A member of the community, Mr Peter Ojabo spoke to leadership newspaper. His 71 year old father, Pa Innocent Ojabo was butchered in the attack. “This Fulani herdsmen came through River Ogege and first of all killed one Eric Attah and his wife who were bathing at the river before proceeding to the community and opening fire on everybody on sight including women and children. Even my 90 year old uncle who cannot work or come out of his room was butchered in pieces”.

According to findings, the Fulani herdsmen claimed it was a reprisal attack after youths in the community rustled their cattle and killed two cattle herders

as it stands, Benue State government is making plans for another mass burial just two months after the New Year massacre

 February 27th 2018;

Location: Akaeze, Ivo local government area of Ebonyi state

Farmers clashed with herdsmen in Akaeze, Ivo local government area of Ebonyi state on Tuesday with four persons sustaining injures, while three herdsmen were left with head injuries, one of the farmers received machete cuts on various parts of his body.

The farmer is receiving treatment at the Emergency Ward of Federal Teaching Hospital Abakaliki (FETHA) while the injured herdsmen are receiving treatment at a hospital in Awgu, Enugu state.

Reports indicated that residents of the community have fled for fear of reprisal attacks from the herdsmen.

Problem started when the herdsmen reportedly invaded farmlands in Akaeze and destroyed crops which angered one of the farmers who was attacked with machete when he confronted them.

The incident forced the state Governor David Umahi to ban grazing in the local government area until investigation into the matter was concluded.

Mr. Umahi, has summoned emergency security meeting with security chiefs in the state, presently Ebonyi is in a heightened state of security due to a possibility for an all-out attack from the herdsmen.

6th of march/ Ebonyi state, there are unconfirmed reports of killings in Ikwo Local Government Area of Ebonyi state .women , children were butchered. *we choose to avoid the graphic images”

Some other attacks by Boko- Haram and Fulani herdsmen

Recently, suspected herdsmen invaded communities in Adamawa State, killing over 37 people, injuring 30 while several houses were completely razed down.

Local militia, which gave this hint to newsmen on Wednesday, said four loggers were killed on Tuesday when they stepped on a landmine left by the insurgents near Dikwa, about 90 KM  east of  Maiduguri.

In another incident, three people were killed in Gamboru along the Cameroon border. The attackers sneaked into town on foot at about 2:00 am where they slaughtered their first victim in the Kasuwar Shanu area and looted his provision store, before moving to Fulatari area, where they shot and killed two residents.

All these attacks and bloodshed all took place within a space of two weeks. I remember the good old days when all we needed to worry about was high way robbers.

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