According to residents, the attacks began on Monday evening and lasted for several hours, with at least 45 bodies counted in 20 communities. The traditional ruler of the Ugbobi community was also among those killed.
Many others sustained severe injuries. Residents accused Fulani herdsmen of carrying out the attacks, which they claim were unprovoked. One resident reported that people could not go to their farms to harvest farm produce, as the Fulani herdsmen would bring their cows to eat the produce and set whatever remains on fire.
Barrister Ada Ocholi, a resident of the affected area, lamented the lack of a meaningful response from the police, adding that even the military men available in the affected communities do not hunt the armed attackers in the bush.
He said they rather maintain their positions to secure their lives. Ocholi also stated that the Fulani herdsmen had directed that they would not like to see the residents in their respective farms after 10 am, as that is the time they start the daily rearing of their cattle.
The attacks started with the killing of not less than 15 people in Ikobi, Apa, followed by the killing of three persons in Oiji, Apa. Two people were killed in Edikwu, seven in Inyapu, three in Akpanta, and four in Ugbobi, including their chief, Chief Adanu, and one person was killed in Akpete, while two ladies were raped. Eight people were also killed in Atakpa, Agatu.
Efforts to speak with the police were not successful at the time of making this report. The recent attack in Benue is the latest in a series of violent attacks on farming communities across Nigeria, with Fulani herdsmen often accused of carrying out the attacks.
The government has been criticized for failing to take adequate measures to address the crisis, which has claimed the lives of many and displaced thousands of people.