On Monday, August 11, Fulani militants attacked the Yelewata community in Benue State, Nigieria, killing three and injuring several. The attack took place around 7a.m., as the armed militants opened fire on the Yelewata community.
This attack comes only two months after more than 200 people were brutally killed in the middle of the night in June this year. Thousands have since been displaced as result of the insecurity.
“The victims had gone to farm when the armed herders struck. Three people were killed, and three others escaped with injuries, while some managed to flee unharmed,” a government official who asked to remain anonymous told Nigerian news.
Following the attack, some remaining citizens of Yelewata took to the roads to protest. They demanded the government put an end to the attacks and stop Fulani herdsmen from occupying their land. Open Doors sources say the protesters also expressed a lack of confidence in the national army stationed in Yelewata and demanded a withdrawal of the troops from their community.
Where do Christians experience the
most persecution?
June’s attack was described as horrific, with several residents burnt in their homes. The community, still in grief, is yet to properly resettle after June’s attack. Most of the inhabitants who had fled Yelewata are still in Internally Displaced Persons camps within Benue state.
According to local OD partners, Yelewata is a nearly 100% Christian community of mostly subsistence farmers. Despite the attack in June which displaced thousands, some men have stayed behind in order to farm their land and make use of the rainy season. Such measures are a forced necessity due to the food shortage for the displaced.
A spokesperson for Open Doors work in Sub-saharan Africa commented, “Open Doors condemns in the strongest terms possible the attacks in Benue state. For this pattern of attack on mostly Christian villages to continue without restraint is totally unacceptable. Christians in the Middle Belt of Nigeria need to know their government is willing to do what is needed to secure their safety of all her citizens, regardless of their ethnicity or religion.”
