Will Nigeria provide protection & justice for Christians affected by Benue attack? 

Christian communities in the Guma local government area (LGA) in Benue state, Northern Nigeria faced at least six suspected Fulani militant attacks between June 8 and June 14. The attacks in which women and children were not spared, left more than 200 people dead.   

Jo Newhouse, spokesperson for the Arise Africa campaign, an initiative of Open Doors and several other partners stated,

“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.” 

The United Nations condemned the recent attacks and called for a comprehensive investigation into the incidents. 

“The Arise Africa campaign joins the UN in calling for immediate action and a comprehensive investigation. We also call upon the government of Nigeria to take immediate action to provide protection, by taking robust action to stop violent militant attacks. We call for justice, which includes the fair prosecution of those responsible. And lastly, we call for restoration by providing restitution, rehabilitation and compensation for survivors and communities,” Newhouse added. 

According to the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi’s Foundation for Justice, Development and Peace, the most serious attack of June 13 in Yelwata was preceded by several smaller, yet brutal strikes.  

• On June 8, 2025, in the Udei village of the Nyiev ward. The attackers shot dead two farmers and injured Dabu Iorkohol Peter as they were working on their field. 
• On June 11, 2025, attackers killed two women working in the filed with machetes near Tse Ivokor village, in the Unongu community of Guma LGA.  
• On June 12, 2025, Amos Uorayev, an IDP and Protection Volunteer with the Foundation for Justice Development and Peace, Makurdi, set out with four other youths to recover bodies but were ambushed and killed at around 4:00p.m. 

On June 13 there was a bloodbath that started when another search party comprising a resident and 3 soldiers, happened upon some attackers and were killed. The attackers next struck the Akondutyough community in Makurdi LGA, indiscriminately shooting at residents and killing people they could get close enough to with machetes. 5 people were killed and 8 injured.  

At about 10 pm attackers struck Yelwata mission site where 400 internally displaced people were sheltering. When they met resistance from the military, the attackers retreated to the Yelwata Main market area where more IDPs were taking refuge in food storage facilities. They set fire to the buildings and mowed fleeing people down with guns and machetes. Witnesses reported that the attackers shouted “Allahu Akubar” as they attacked. 200 were killed. Five were injured.  

The attack left at least 218 people dead and more than 6,000 displaced.  

Last following Sunday thousands of people gathered in the streets of Makurdi to protest the killings. Police fired teargas to disperse the protestors. A young woman at the protest emotionally said, “…listen to us, we are tired, please stop Benue killings!” 

Governor Hyacinth Alia of Benue State told Arise news on June 17 that the state is now firmly under siege by “terrorists”.  

“The international community should do all in its power to encourage urgency and transparency from the Nigerian government in action to ensure they achieve these goals,” Newhouse concluded.  

The Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, on Tuesday, June 24, told media that 26 suspects have been arrested in connection with Yelwata attacks. 

What is behind the violence in Benue and other areas of Northern Nigeria? 

• The area: The Middle Belt. This region is still part of northern Nigeria. But unlike the Hausa Muslim dominated far northern states, the Middle Belt hosts a diversity of peoples and cultures. It is a melting pot of ethno-religious groups that have long co-existed. It is also the center of Christian presence in the North. It is also the breadbasket of northern Nigeria. 
• The actors: Fulani militants vs Farmers. Fulani, a nomadic people, increasingly migrate southward into Middle Belt states. This is not a new migration route, but due to climate change, resources are becoming scarcer and competition more intense. While civilians are not allowed to carry weapons in Nigeria, the Fulani are well armed. 
• The events: While the violence is commonly called a conflict over resources, we disagree with this oversimplified and inaccurate narrative. Instead, we call this targeted violence. Witnesses testify that attackers carry crude weapons like machetes but also rifles – often what witnesses call sophisticated weapons. Witnesses have even reported seeing helicopters delivering weapons. Testimony after testimony speak about people being attacked late at night as they were in bed, and defenceless people like women, children and the elderly not spared. This can also be called land-grabbing, since testimony after testimony speak about herders occupying the land of which they had just killed or chased the owners away.