Tension boiled over in Benue State on Monday as the Yelwata community in Guma Local Government Area became the latest target in the unending wave of bloodshed linked to suspected armed herdsmen.
At dawn—around 7 a.m.—gunfire shattered the fragile calm of the rural settlement. Eyewitnesses say the attackers stormed the community in a coordinated assault, firing indiscriminately and leaving a trail of carnage in their wake. By the time the shooting subsided, three residents lay dead and three others were battling for their lives with varying degrees of injuries.
In an outpouring of rage and grief, villagers carried the lifeless bodies of the victims to the Makurdi–Abuja federal highway, blocking the busy road and grinding vehicular movement to a halt for hours. Stranded motorists watched in shock as the protest escalated into a powerful statement of anger against what locals describe as years of unending neglect and insecurity.
A youth leader in Yelwata, Achii Mathias, spoke with heavy emotion, declaring that the attack was yet another grim reminder that the community was under siege.
> “The Fulani again attacked our community this morning around 7 a.m., shooting sporadically. They killed three people and injured three others. As I speak, the Security Adviser to the governor and the Chairman of Guma LGA are here assessing the situation,” Mathias told PUNCH.
When contacted, the spokesperson for the Benue State Police Command, DSP Catherine Udeme Edet, said she had not yet received a formal report of the incident but promised to share details once available.
Monday’s bloodshed adds to a chilling catalogue of violence that has haunted Benue for years, where clashes between farming communities and armed herders have left thousands dead and displaced.
Yelwata, in particular, has become synonymous with tragedy. On June 13, the community witnessed one of the most horrific massacres in recent Nigerian history when gunmen—believed to be herders—slaughtered no fewer than 200 people in a single night.
The latest killings come barely weeks after coordinated attacks in Gwer West, Logo, and Ukum LGAs, where dozens more lost their lives, forcing thousands to flee their ancestral homes.
Security analysts warn that without decisive and sustained federal intervention, Benue’s rural communities could face total collapse. Human rights advocates have also accused the government of “treating mass killings as mere statistics” and called for urgent measures to break the cycle of violence before the state is engulfed in a full-blown humanitarian crisis.
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