32 Reportedly Killed As Gunmen Ambush Displaced Persons In Nasarawa

Gunmen on Sunday morning ambushed travellers along Arikye Village in Nasarawa Eggon Local Government Area, killing at least 32 of them based on body counts done by Premium Times. The victims, who had been displaced from their homes due to the violence in the state, were said to be returning when the attack occurred. Governor Umaru Al-Makura had last week visited the displaced persons camps and asked them to go home.
The governor said the state government was working with security agencies to improve the security situation as well as provide relief materials. The Nasarawa State Police Public Relations Officer, Ismaila Numan, confirmed Sunday’s attack but said the details and casualty were yet to be ascertained.

A witness, Bala Mohammad, disclosed that the attackers divided themselves into groups and ensured no one escaped.“We were at the farm when we continued to hear gun shots, so we hid and watched them execute our brothers without help, They will ask if you are an Eggon by tribe. If you say yes, they will allow you to go, but unknown to the victims, another group was waiting in the middle. Those ones were just shooting at sight whenever they discovered that some people were coming,”.

Thousands of people have been killed in ethno-religious crisis in North-Central states of Nasarawa, Plateau, and Benue, as well as neighbouring Taraba State in the past year. The violence there is different from the Boko Haram insurgency which has killed over 13,000 people mainly in the North Eastern part of Nigeria.