By Rafiu Ajakaye
LAGOS
Up to 25 people are said to have been killed in an attack by suspected Fulani herdsmen on a village in central Nigeria Benue State, eyewitnesses said Monday.
"Herdsmen who we know to be Fulani attacked our village Lorza in the early hours of Sunday. They killed up to 25 people while many others sustained gunshot injuries," Gholu Austen, a villager who survived the incident, told Anadolu Agency on Monday.
He said the attackers were up to 40, adding that the assailants claimed to be avenging the "death of their people who were killed by Agatu farmers in the area".
Wasiu Aladesuru, who works for a firm in the Logo local government under which the village falls, confirmed the attack.
"The attackers did not just kill people, they also razed the community. At the moment people have deserted the village and nearby settlements because of fear of further attacks," Aladesuru told Anadolu Agency by phone.
He said the area had been the hotbed of incessant clashes between herdsmen and local farmers in the past months.
"Both sides have engaged in the destruction of one another's properties and killing one another and the government seems helpless," he lamented.
Benue police spokesman Austin Ezeani confirmed the incident but said he was aware of only "four casualties and some injuries".
"We have restored normalcy back to the area and beefed up security and we urge all sides to exercise restraint," Ezeani told Anadolu Agency on phone.
Benue, known as the food basket of the nation for its agricultural endowments, is an epicenter of violent clashes between herdsmen and local farmers, centering on argument over land use and animal grazing.
Similar clashes also take place from time to time in the states of Plateau, Nasarawa, Taraba and Kaduna where ethnic rivalry and claims over land ownership or kingship have formed a longstanding crisis.
