The United Nations has strongly condemned the recent wave of brutal attacks that swept through communities in Benue State, Nigeria, leaving over 150 civilians dead and thousands displaced in what is being described as one of the deadliest episodes of violence in the region in years.
According to local authorities and survivors, heavily armed assailants suspected to be militia linked to long-standing herder-farmer conflicts—stormed Yelewata village and surrounding communities over the weekend, burning homes, killing residents indiscriminately, and displacing entire populations. Hospitals in Makurdi, the state capital, are overwhelmed, with urgent calls for blood donations, medicine, and trauma care for hundreds of wounded victims.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres, through Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq, issued a firm statement from New York, saying:
“The Secretary-General strongly condemns these senseless killings and urges Nigerian authorities to bring the perpetrators to swift justice. We stand with the people of Benue during this moment of profound grief.”
The attacks have displaced more than 6,500 people, most of whom are now sheltering in overcrowded internally displaced persons (IDP) camps around Makurdi. Humanitarian agencies are warning of an escalating crisis amid rising needs for food, clean water, medical care, and shelter. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has begun assessments to coordinate emergency response.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, addressing the nation on Monday, called the killings “unacceptable and barbaric,” and vowed to visit Benue personally to meet community leaders and security chiefs.
“We will not allow these acts of terror to go unpunished. Every Nigerian has a right to live in peace,” Tinubu said.
The Nigerian military has since deployed reinforcement troops to the affected areas. Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, has called for a re-evaluation of national security strategies and stronger coordination with state authorities, particularly in regions prone to inter-communal strife.
Benue State has long been a flashpoint in Nigeria’s farmer-herder conflict, a complex struggle over land, grazing rights, and ethnicity that has claimed thousands of lives over the past decade. Recent security lapses and lack of disarmament have further fueled the violence, with many communities left vulnerable and unprotected.
Human rights organizations, both local and international, are calling for a transparent investigation into the massacre and have urged the Nigerian government to address the root causes of the conflict, including land reform, poverty, and climate-induced displacement.
As night falls over the IDP camps in Makurdi, survivors mourn their losses and brace for an uncertain future. “We ran with nothing,” said Esther Iorver, a mother of three who fled the violence. “We just want peace and a place to be safe.”
