Terrorists have reportedly killed over 15 people in a recent assault on three villages in Apa Local Government Area (LGA) of Benue State.
Local residents report that the attacks have persisted for three consecutive days, commencing on Tuesday, March 19, 2024. They stated that five individuals were slain on Tuesday, two on Wednesday, and eight on Thursday.
According to sources, the assailants targeted Akpete, Ijaha, Ochumekwu, and Inyapu villages in Apa LGA, resulting in fatalities, arson, and numerous injuries.
Oche Yakubu, a youth leader from Apa, relayed to reporters, “From Wednesday evening till Thursday morning, terrorists have launched attacks on Akpete, Ijaha, Ochumekwu, and Inyapu, resulting in the deaths of two individuals and leaving one severely injured.
“They killed two in Ugbobi, one in Ijaha and wounded one other. In Inyapu, they killed two people making it five people altogether.
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“There is no reason for these attacks. The people will just gather in the village, would be in their homes and Fulani will just enter the bush and begin to shoot and attack people. They are just killing our people anyhow,” he said.
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer PPRO SP Catherine Anene said she has no reports on the attacks.
James Umoru, the caretaker chairman of Apa LGA, acknowledged the attacks, expressing their helplessness as the incidents occur daily, and he is uncertain about the accurate count of casualties.
“There is no explanation for what you heard, that is the truth. About 95 percent of a section of my community is displaced. The entire Edikpo community has been displaced, Opaha community where I come from, nobody is there, Odugbo, nobody is there; in Akpete, Ikobi, Akpata, Idiaha, Ochumekwu, Adiga nobody is in those communities.
“Everyday, they will be burning houses in Akpete. As I speak to you, for three consecutive days, they have been going to Akpete and burning houses after chasing the people out of their ancestral homes.
“They have been laying ambush, killing people, one, two three to five persons on daily basis. Right now I don’t know the number of casualties. It’s so many.”
Umoru emphasized the necessity for leaders to adopt proactive measures to halt the killings before they escalate further, stressing that mere lip service is insufficient. #Terrorists
