Herdsmen in Central Nigeria have killed seven Christians.

4 weeks ago

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"According to Anawah, the herdsmen, who we suspect is collaborating with terrorists, launched a two-day assault on our villages, starting on Tuesday, 19 March," Anawah informed Christian Daily International-Morning Star-News via a text message. At around 4 p.m., the terrorists commenced their attack on our villages and continued on Wednesday, 20 March. So far, we know seven Christians were killed during the invasion of our villages.”

As per accounts from residents, Fulanis were reported to be accompanied by other terrorists.

Fulani herdsmen accompanied by other terrorists on March 19 and 20 killed seven Christians in attacks on villages in central Nigeria, sources said.

In Benue state’s Logo County, the assailants slaughtered seven Christians in the Yongia Ukambie Tiev and Ukembrergya-Tswarev communities, said the Rev. Jonathan Adagbe, chairman of the Logo Local Government Council.

Pastor Adagbe informed Christian Daily International-Morning Star News that a group of terrorists accompanied the herdsmen as they carried out the attacks. The actions of these herdsmen are characterized by their boldness, as they carry out attacks against Christians without hesitation or punishment. Their terrorist acts are met with no opposition.

The pastor said he visited the areas for assessment to file reports with the Benue state government and saw armed Muslim Fulani herdsmen still moving freely in the communities they had attacked.

Community leader Joseph Anawah said the terrorists attacked without any resistance from Nigeria’s military or security agents.

“According to Anawah, the herdsmen, who we suspect are collaborating with terrorists, launched a two-day assault on our villages, starting on Tuesday, 19 March,” Anawah informed Christian Daily International-Morning Star-News via a text message. At around 4 p.m., the terrorists commenced their attack on our villages and continued on Wednesday, 20 March. So far, we know seven Christians were killed during the invasion of our villages.”

Nigeria remained the deadliest place in the world to follow Christ, with 4,118 people killed for their faith from Oct. 1, 2022, to Sept. 30, 2023, according to Open Doors’ 2024 World Watch List (WWL) report. More kidnappings of Christians than in any other country also took place in Nigeria, with 3,300.

Nigeria was also the third highest country in the number of attacks on churches and other Christian buildings, such as hospitals, schools, and cemeteries, with 750, according to the report.

In the 2024 WWL of the countries where it is most challenging to be a Christian, Nigeria was ranked No. 6, as in the previous year.

Numbering in the millions across Nigeria and the Sahel, predominantly Muslim Fulani comprise hundreds of clans of many different lineages who do not hold extremist views. Still, some Fulani do adhere to radical Islamist ideology, the United Kingdom’s All-Party Parliamentary Group for International Freedom or Belief (APPG) noted in a 2020 report.

“They adopt a comparable strategy to Boko Haram and ISWAP and demonstrate a clear intent to target Christians and potent symbols of Christian identity,” the APPG report states.

Christian leaders in Nigeria have said they believe herdsmen’s attacks on Christian communities in Nigeria’s Middle Belt are inspired by their desire to forcefully take over Christians’ lands and impose Islam, as desertification has made it difficult for them to sustain their herds.