Five killed, seven injured as bandits attack Benue market

Armed bandits suspected to beryllium herders person launched a deadly onslaught connected Yanriwa Market successful Kwande Local Government Area of Benue State, sidesplitting 5 traders and injuring 7 others.

A nonmigratory of the community, Lawrence Akerigba, who spoke with our analogous by telephone, said the gunmen stormed the marketplace astir 3 p.m. portion trading activities were ongoing.

According to Akerigba, the attackers opened occurrence indiscriminately, shooting astatine anyone successful show and causing chaos and bloodshed.

He lamented that contempt erstwhile authorities promises, nary further information unit had been deployed to the country pursuing a deadly Christmas Day onslaught successful 2024 that near implicit 20 farmers dead.

“The national authorities promised to nonstop much information operatives to our communities to assistance displaced farmers instrumentality home, but thing has been done. We person been abandoned to our fate,” Akerigba said.

He explained that Yanriwa Market, located successful a mountainous country and patronized by residents of Ikyurav and Turan communities, had been a lifeline for farmers who had to found a caller marketplace way aft the Anwase roadworthy became impassable owed to ongoing attacks.

“The herdsmen invaded the marketplace portion radical were engaged buying and selling. Five radical were killed connected the spot, 7 others sustained injuries, and galore are inactive missing. The hunt for the missing continues,” helium added.

Akerigba noted that galore schools, churches, and markets successful the country person been unopen owed to persistent attacks, and helium appealed for urgent deployment of much information forces to reconstruct safety.

“The information unit present are doing their best, but they are excessively fewer to unafraid the country effectively. We request urgent assistance to let our children to instrumentality to schoolhouse and for farmers to spell backmost to their farms,” helium said.

Currently, each schools successful the 5 assembly wards affected by the situation stay closed.