Gunmen killed three residents and a soldier in an attack on Bel village in the Sho community of Barkin Ladi Local Government Area, Plateau State, Nigeria, at about 9 p.m. on Sunday, 8 November, according to reports by Vanguard and Daily Trust. Several other people were injured.

The Berom Youth Moulders Association, a youth group from the area, identified three of the dead as Emmanuel Pam Dachung, 15; Joseph Gyang, 28; and Emmanuel Yohanna, 32. The soldier has not been publicly named.

Barkin Ladi attack: what residents said

A resident, Bulus Bot, told reporters that the gunmen entered the village at night and fired on people. “The gunmen stormed the community at about 9 p.m. and opened fire on innocent citizens, leaving some people dead and others injured,” he said, as quoted by Vanguard and Daily Trust.

The association’s publicity secretary, Rwang Tengwong, condemned the killings and called on security agencies to find and prosecute those responsible. Daily Trust reported that the spokesperson for Operation Enduring Peace, Captain Polycarp Oteh, had promised to respond but had not done so by press time.

International Christian Concern (ICC), a US-based persecution watchdog, reported on 10 November that two more people were killed the same night in a separate attack on the Lakas community in Panyam, Mangu LGA, putting the reported toll from the two incidents at at least six. ICC said Tengwong told it no arrests had been made. Residents quoted by ICC blamed Fulani herders and said they feared going to their farms and to church. ICC noted that some of these allegations could not be independently verified.

Plateau attacks: a pattern of violence

The killings are the latest in a long series of attacks on rural communities in Plateau State, where, ICC notes, Christian farming communities have repeatedly reported killings, displacement and the destruction of property. Daily Trust reported that at least five attacks were recorded in four local government areas between 27 October and 8 November, leaving more than 20 people dead, including two soldiers and a mobile police officer. The state imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew in affected areas on 21 September, but attacks have continued.

The causes are disputed. Daily Trust reported that Berom leaders accuse herders of trying to drive them from ancestral land, while the Plateau chairman of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, Ibrahim Yusuf Babayo, accused members of the farming community of attacking Fulani herders and said dozens of his members had been killed. Both groups called for more patrols and faster responses to distress calls.

Plateau Governor Caleb Mutfwang said on Monday, 9 November, that the state would set up camps for its Operation Rainbow security outfit in all 17 local government areas, supported by drones and a monitoring centre, according to Daily Trust.

Why it matters

Nigeria is home to one of Africa’s largest Christian populations, and rural communities in its Middle Belt have suffered repeated deadly attacks for years. For churches in Plateau, each attack means funerals, grieving families and congregations afraid to gather. The repeated reports of no arrests raise questions about protection and justice that Christian leaders in Nigeria and abroad continue to press. Jesus Social will follow up as security agencies respond.

Jesus Social has previously reported on the case of Rhoda Jatau, on prayers for persecuted Nigerian Christians and on efforts to get Bibles to persecuted believers.

As reported by Vanguard, Daily Trust and International Christian Concern. Compiled and edited by the Jesus Social newsroom.

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