Five people, including a relative of a TruthNigeria reporter, have been reported killed in an ongoing raid on Butura Kampani, a Christian village located 42 miles south of Jos, the capital of Plateau State in central Nigeria.
The town, besieged by terrorists armed with assault rifles, has witnessed a 10-hour attack, beginning at 10 am local time, residents say. The first victims were five people returning from their farms, 2 miles west of the town, TruthNigeria has gathered.
Mark Kuku, the brother-in-law of a TruthNigeria reporter, Masara Kim who hails from the village was among those killed as he harvested potatoes to feed his family. The attackers, hiding behind tall trees in the forest path, targeted unsuspecting victims, TruthNigeria has learned. Butura Kampani had been under lockdown since Christmas Eve when terrorists began attacks that displaced at least 19,000 people and killed 295 between the start of the attacks on Dec. 23 and the end on December 30.
Bishop Ayuba Matawal, overseeing 13 camps in Bokkos, told TruthNigeria that 10,000 people are sheltering in the camps. Despite the risks, some starving residents returning to the town attempt to visit their farms for food, facing threats from terrorists laying siege to the area.
On January 17, a van loaded with arms, reportedly belonging to Muslim members of the Fulani ethnicity, was intercepted and burned by a mob in a bypass encircling Butura Kampani. Soldiers rescued the occupants, responding swiftly.
The Fulani, with over 10 million members in Nigeria, have been implicated in numerous genocidal massacres, including over 3,500 last year, with Plateau State accounting for more than 1,200 deaths according to monitoring groups and local officials.
The latest attacks on Bokkos claimed the lives of over 295 people on Christmas Eve, with five victims from Butura Kampani.
Terrorists, speaking the Fulani dialect, began amassing in surrounding areas after the mob action, launching an attack at 10 am locally. Civilian volunteers, armed with homemade rifles, resisted until soldiers arrived at 3 pm, forcing the terrorists to retreat to a nearby mountain.
However, as of 8 pm local time, reinforcements are observed heading to the mountain, suggesting a potential renewed strike.
Police and army authorities have sent additional personnel, but residents fear the encamped irregulars might overwhelm the town. The situation remains tense as authorities work to secure the area and protect the residents.
