Gunmen suspected to be local militias, have attacked Gugur community in Katsina-Ala local government area (LGA) of Benue state and killed several people.
The Punch quoted local sources as saying the gunmen rode on motorcycles to attack the community between 9 pm and 10 pm on Tuesday, June 18.
Shaku Justine, the local government chairman, confirmed the attack.
Justine said: “It’s true that the incident happened yesterday (Tuesday, June 18) between 9 pm and 10 pm.
“Six people were killed in the community.”
When contacted, Catherine Anene, spokesperson of the Benue police command, said she was yet to receive the report.
Competition over land use is common in Benue state, where fault lines between farmers and herders often overlap with ethnic and religious divisions.
The state has been one of the states hit hardest by years of disputes between nomadic herders and pastoral farmers who blame herdsmen for destroying farmland with their cattle grazing.
Those conflicts have often spiralled into broader criminality and tit-for-tat revenge attacks between informal armed groups established to protect rival communities.
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