Violence in Nigeria claims at least 86 lives

ABUJA — At least 86 people have been confirmed killed following a coordinated attack on several villages in Nigeria’s central state of Plateau, police said on Sunday.

The attack by suspected gunmen late on Saturday also left six people severely injured and destroyed 50 houses, two cars, and 15 motorcycles, police said.

A police spokesman said the cause of the attack was unknown.

The coordinated attack mostly affected Razat, Ruku, Nyarr, Kura and Gana-Ropp villages of Gashish District in Barkin Ladi area of Plateau, Terna Tyopev, the spokesman for Plateau police, said.

However, a total of 11 villages were attacked by the gunmen.

Tyopev said the remains of most dead victims had been returned to their families while some were sent to the local morgue.

He said the police had launched an investigation into the attack.

President Muhammadu Buhari mourned the “deeply unfortunate killings.

“The grievous loss of lives and property arising from the killings in Plateau today is painful and regrettable,” said the president.

“We will not rest until all murderers and criminal elements and their sponsors are incapacitated and brought to justice,” he said.

The deaths are the latest in a long-running battle for land and resources that is putting Buhari under pressure as elections approach next year.

A dusk-to-dawn curfew has been imposed on the affected area for fears of more violence, local government in Plateau said.

Plateau State Governor Simon Lalong, who described the attack as “devastating”, has requested security agencies to intensify their efforts in curbing the attacks on rural communities in the state.

Baba Bala, who fled the violence, said: “I escaped with a smashed windscreen and dents on my car. I saw six dead bodies and several damaged cars.”

Plateau State is located in Nigeria’s central belt where the Muslim-dominated north and the Christian-majority south meet.

On March 7, 2010, members of local Muslim and Christian communities fought each other in revenge for previous killings.

The state has witnessed some bomb blasts and constant rifts between locals and Fulani herdsmen, with many, especially women and children, losing their lives.

The herders, pressured by factors including the impact of climate change, are being forced southward into the farming communities in search of better land for grazing.