Fresh violence has erupted in parts of Kwande Local Government Area, where suspected armed herders reportedly killed four persons and left 10 others injured in separate attacks that occurred in two days.
Residents said the violence began on Thursday when armed assailants invaded farmlands at Anyiase in Moon Council Ward, opening fire on farmers who were working on their fields.
Giving an eyewitness account, a community leader and survivor, Terzungwe Ajir, said the attack occurred at about 3:20 p.m., leaving two farmers, identified as Asongo Nagwebe and Tarzan Agbahegh dead at the scene.
According to him, 10 other victims sustained gunshot injuries and were evacuated to a medical facility in Jato-Aka for treatment.
Ajir explained that one of the injured later died while being transferred to Makurdi for specialised medical care, increasing the number of fatalities from the attack to three.
The community leader further disclosed that the attackers struck again over the weekend, allegedly intercepting a commercial vehicle at Ikyogen Junction as residents attempted to flee the troubled communities.
He said the gunmen opened fire on the vehicle, killing one passenger instantly, while other occupants escaped by running into the surrounding bushes.
Ajir lamented that the latest assault had worsened the humanitarian situation in the area, with many residents abandoning their homes for fear of further attacks.
“Our people have continued to live in fear. These attacks have persisted, and many families have now fled to safer locations,” he said.
Efforts to get the reaction of the Chairman of Kwande Local Government Area, Vitalis Neji, were unsuccessful as calls to his mobile telephone were not answered before press time.
Also, the Police Public Relations Officer of the Benue State Police Command, DSP Udeme Edet, neither answered telephone calls nor responded to a text message seeking confirmation of the incidents as of the time this report was filed.