Benue State in Central Nigeria witnessed a mass burial on Tuesday, laying 17 victims of a recent attack by suspected armed herdsmen to rest.
Premium Times also attributed the attack to armed herders, although neither newspaper reported the prescence of cattle herds in the proximity of the massacre.
The attack, which happened on March 7th, reportedly killed 19 people, including a retired soldier and a child. Due to the severity of the killings, two victims were buried earlier.
The somber ceremony was attended by grieving families, government officials, and community members. Media claimed that Gov. Hyacinth Alia gave the funeral oration when in fact a text was read by Deputy Governor Dr. Sam Ode, representing Governor Hyacinth Alia. Ode condemned the violence and expressed deep sorrow.
“Today is a sad day in the history of Benue State,” he stated. “To line up caskets like this is unacceptable. I am so sad, and my heart is heavy to see this kind of spectacle that shouldn’t have happened.”
The Governor’s representative also invoked a controversial narrative known as “herder–farmer clashes” in the state. He said, “The best solution to the activities of these rampaging armed herdsmen in the state is the formation of vigilante groups in the villages.” TruthNigeria has documented that so-called farmer-herder clashes in Benue are organized terrorist attacks financed by Fulani ethnic militia, possibly seeking to gain control of mineral assets, wood resources and rich farmland.
—Ezinwanne Onwuka reports for TruthNigeria from Abuja.
