Odugbeho massacre

Last updated
Odugbeho massacre
Part of Herder-farmer conflicts in Nigeria
Location Odugbeho, Agatu LGA, Benue State, Nigeria
DateJune 7, 2021
5:45 pm – 6:40pm
Deaths40+
Perpetrator Fulani herdsmen

On June 7, 2021, suspected Fulani herdsmen attacked the village of Odugbeho, Agatu LGA, Benue State, Nigeria, killing at least forty people.

Contents

Background

Fulani herdsmen in Nigeria have been in conflict with various farming communities across Nigeria for decades due to disputes over land use. The local government area in Agatu, Benue State is home to various different ethnic groups, and ethnic conflict between Fulani herdsmen and ethnic Agatu locals that broke out in early 2016 led to hundreds of civilians killed. [1] In the conflict, Fulani herdsmen laid siege to several villages in the LGA, including Odugbeho. [1] A second massacre in Nimbo in April 2016 killed hundreds more civilians. [2]

A week before the 2021 massacre in Odugbeho, suspected Fulani herdsmen killed 36 Tiv civilians in the village of Shikaan Mbagena Kpav, also in Benue State. [3] Fulani herdsmen had also stormed several villages in Agatu LGA in the weeks prior to the attack, displacing thousands of people. [4]

Massacre

At the time of the attack, civilians in Odugbeho were at a burial ceremony and others were out at the market due to the village's market day being on Sunday. [5] Later in the afternoon, many people were at home. [5] [4] The herdsmen likely entered the area from Nasarawa State, with one survivor stating that the herdsmen caught the village by surprise by entering from the forest in the direction of Gwer West LGA. [5] [4] The attack began at 5:45 pm, with the herdsmen shooting indiscriminately into the village and the ceremony as soon as they entered. [5] [3] The massacre lasted for an hour until around 6:40 pm, when the herdsmen dispersed back into the forest. [4]

Many civilians fled into the bush towards Ogbaulu to evade the attack. [5] A survivor of the massacre speaking to Channels TV said that while he was fleeing, he saw nine bodies lining the road out of Odugbeho. When he returned to the village after the herdsmen fled, he saw eleven bodies in the village center. [4] Many of the bodies were unable to be recovered the night of the attack in anticipation of a second massacre. [4]

Aftermath

Nigerian senator Abah Moro, who represents Odugbeho's area of Benue in the Nigerian Senate, condemned the attack and stated 40 people were killed. [3] The spokesman for the Benue State police stated that the police had knowledge of the attack and would send reinforcements from Operation Whirl Stroke to the area. [6] The spokesman added that bodies were still being discovered and that the death toll was unknown. [6]

Moro was one of the first officials to report the attack and stated the death toll was 40. John Ngbede, the chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Benue stated that 25 bodies had been buried by June 8, and that 30 had been discovered in total including ten bodies in the bush. [7] Ngbede added that local officials had told him they suspected over 40 people were killed, as many bodies were still in the bush undiscovered. [7] The chairman of Agatu stated that 27 people had been confirmed to be killed by June 8, although the number was not final. [7]

Fulani herdsmen attacked Odugbeho again on June 20, killing eleven people in a spree of attacks on Odugbeho, Aila, and Adagbo. [8] Two people were killed in Odugbeho and 21 houses were burned. [8]

Related Research Articles

Agatu is a Local Government Area of Benue State, North Central Nigeria. It was created in 1996. It used to be the Agatu district of the old Otukpo division. The headquarters of the local government is at Obagaji; it is one of nine local government areas in the southern senatorial zone of Benue State which is mainly occupied by the Idoma people of Benue State. The resident population are mainly farmers.

Uzo-Uwani is a Local Government Area of Enugu State, Nigeria bordering Kogi State and Anambra State. Its headquarters is in the town of Umulokpa. It has an area of 855 km2 and a population of 124,480 at the 2006 census. The postal code of the area is 411.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Communal conflicts in Nigeria</span>

Communal conflicts in Nigeria can be divided into two broad categories:

Nimbo is a border town in Uzo-Uwani area of Enugu State, Nigeria, where seven villages- Ekwuru, Nimbo-Ngwoko, Ugwuijoro, Ebor, Enugu-Nimbo, Umuome and Ugwuachara were invaded, and scores massacred by over 500 armed Fulani herdsmen, rated the fourth deadliest terror group in the world, in the early hours of April 25, 2016. Uzo Uwani has boundaries with the Southern States of Ebonyi and Anambra, and Central States of Benue and Kogi, where these attacks have increased lately.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Agatu massacres</span>

The Agatu attacks and massacres occurred in Agatu, Benue State, began in late February 2016 and continued for several days into March.

Herder–farmer conflicts in Nigeria are a series of disputes over arable land resources across Nigeria between the mostly-Muslim Fulani herders and the mostly-Christian non-Fulani farmers. The conflicts have been especially prominent in the Middle Belt since the return of democracy in 1999. More recently, they have deteriorated into attacks on farmers by Fulani herdsmen.

Dickson Dominic Tarkighir is a Nigerian politician. He is a member of the 10th Nigeria National Assembly of the Nigerian House of Representatives representing Makurdi/Guma Federal Constituency. He was also a member of the 8th National Assembly and a member of the ECOWAS parliament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019 Kaduna State massacre</span> 2019 terrorist attack in Nigeria

On February 10–11, 2019, 141 people were killed in the Kajuru LGA of the Nigerian state of Kaduna according to the state governor, hours before the Nigerian general election. The dead included 11 Adara people and 130 Fulani. However the Fulani group Miyetti Allah was reported to have published a list of 131 Fulani who had died and it also stated that the bodies of 66 Fulani were recovered while the bodies of 65 other Fulani remained missing. An attack by suspected Fulani gunmen on Ungwar Bardi killed 11 Adara people. An Adara militia in turn attacked Fulani settlements. Miyetti Allah later clarified 66 were buried in graves and 65 remained missing.

Anti-Fulani sentiment is the hostility that exists towards Fulani people in Nigeria, Mali and other West African nations and the discrimination that they are subjected to as a result of it. The Fulani are a semi-nomadic ethnic group that is dispersed across several West African countries. Fulani people represent 6% of Nigeria's population.

In 2018, several massacres occurred in central Nigeria, supposedly by Fulani herdsmen gunmen. At least 50 were killed in all.

In 2018, several massacres occurred in Benue and Kogi, in central Nigeria, supposedly by Fulani herdsmen gunmen. At least 50 were killed in all.

On April 12, 2022, armed herdsmen attacked several villages in Benue State, Nigeria, killing over 25 people and injuring many more.

Between December 19 and 25, 2022, several villages in Kagoro, Kaduna State, Nigeria were attacked by unknown groups, who killed over 46 people in two attacks.

On June 17, 2019, ethnic Fulani militiamen attacked Dogon civilians in the villages of Gangafani and Yoro, in Koro Cercle, Mali, killing 41 people.

On March 20, 2022, at least 37 people were killed by bandits in the village of Ganar Kiyawa, in Bukkuyum, Zamfara State, Nigeria.

On January 3, 2020, suspected Fulani militants attacked the town of Tawari, Kogi State, Nigeria, killing twenty-nine people.

On May 26, 2020, over seventy-four people were killed on multiple attacks in villages in Sabon Birni LGA in Sokoto State, Nigeria. The attacks were a campaign of reprisal attacks targeting Garki, and came after the massacre of nineteen civilians by bandits in Sabon Birni a week prior.

The immediate origins of killings in Southern Kaduna especially in the 2010s and early 2020s can be traced to the events that brought in Goodluck Jonathan into power in 2010 as the President of Nigeria, and escalated after the presidential election in 2011, which he won.

On March 11, 2023, armed bandits attacked the village of Ungwan Wakili in Zangon Kataf LGA, Kaduna State, Nigeria, killing seventeen people.

References

  1. 1 2 "Agatu Massacre: Villagers Take Up Arms After Fulani Terrorist Herdsmen Attack | IPN". web.archive.org. 2017-01-06. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  2. ↑ Igata, Francis (April 25, 2016). "Breaking news: Many feared killed as Fulani herdsmen invade Enugu communities". Vanguard News. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 "Fulani Herdsmen Strike Benue Community Again, Kill 40 Residents | Sahara Reporters". saharareporters.com. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Nathaniel, Soonest (June 7, 2021). "Suspected Herdsmen Kill 20 Persons In Agatu, Leave Many Injured". Channels TV. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Rapheal (2021-06-08). "30 feared slaughtered by suspected herdsmen in Benue". The Sun Nigeria. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  6. 1 2 Dechi, Nicholas (June 7, 2021). "Gunmen attack Benue's Odugbeho community, police mum on casualties". PM News Nigeria. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
  7. 1 2 3 Ya'u, Mukhtar (2021-06-08). "Gunmen Invade Benue Community, Scores Killed". Emergency Digest. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  8. 1 2 "Agony as communal clashes persist in Benue communities - Daily Trust". dailytrust.com/. 2021-06-20. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.