Zimpapers Logo

ABUJA. — At least 40 people were killed in fresh attacks by gunmen in Nigeria’s middle-belt state of Plateau, where ethno-religious crises have claimed hundreds of lives in the past, local sources said yesterday. Local police spokesperson Felicia Anselm confirmed the attacks in Barkin Ladi local government area of the Nigerian state. Although many people have been confirmed dead and several others were injured, the total number of casualties were yet to be ascertained.

She said the overnight attacks were carried out concurrently at four different locations including Foron, Gurabok, Rawuru and Tasu, all in the restive local government area also known as battle field for Fulani herdsmen and the native Berom people.

“We cannot give the exact number of the casualties yet because our men are collating the figures,” she told reporters in Jos, capital of the state.

According to her, the casualties figure would be publicised after collation.

Spokesperson of the Special Task Force (STF) in the state Capital Salisu Mustapha told Xinhua over the phone that the coordinated attacks were carried out around 2 am, local time yesterday by unknown gunmen.

Mustapha said the attacked communities were Katu Kapang, Daron, Tul and Rawuru villages in Barkin Ladi and Mangu Local Government Areas.

According to him, the attackers killed about 13 persons in Katu Kapang, eight in Daron, nine in Tul and seven others in Rawuru.

Local residents said more than 40 lifeless bodies, including those of pregnant women and children, were deposited at a nearby morgue yesterday and that scores of people had been taken to hospital for treatment.

A mass burial was held for at least 15 victims of the overnight attacks in Tatu, one of the places that was attacked.

Five days ago, two earlier attacks in Barkin Ladi and Shendam local government areas claimed five lives, according to the police.

Struggle over land ownership, economic resources and political control tends to be expressed not just in ethnic but also religious terms.

Thousands have been killed and hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced internally, just as billions of dollars of property have been destroyed due to the crises.

Since the end of 2010, security has deteriorated in the state because of terror attacks and suicide bombings against churches and security targets by Boko Haram, a group mostly responsible for wave of terrorist attacks in the northern part of Nigeria. —  Xinhua.