Dozens killed in Easter attacks in northern Nigeria

At least 26 people have been killed in three separate attacks 

Attacks like these are part of a long-running cycle of violence in north-central Nigeria.

At least 26 people have been killed in three separate Easter attacks in northern Nigeria.

At least 17 were killed on Saturday when armed men attacked the Mbalom community in the Gwer West area of Nigeria’s north-central Benue State.

Benue State governor Hyacinth Alia confirmed the attacks on Sunday but did not specify how many people were killed. Residents gave the figure of 17.

Attacks like these are part of a long-running cycle of violence in north-central Nigeria, where disputes over land and grazing between mostly Muslim Fulani herders and largely Christian farming communities frequently escalate into deadly clashes. Criminal gangs are also active.

Tarhana Samson, a community resident, described the attacks as “devastating”.

He said: “The rainy season is coming, and this is when people are preparing to go to their farms. How do they do that now?” In a separate attack on Saturday morning against a police headquarters in Borno State in the north east of the country, four police officers were killed after a protracted gunfight with an Islamic State-affiliated group, according to Borno Police public relations officer Kenneth Daso.

On Sunday, at an Easter service in Ariko village, in Kaduna state, gunmen killed five people, according to the army.

The identity of the gunmen is unknown. The army said the assailants were forced to abandon the abduction of 31 hostages after troops responded to a distress call.

“Regrettably, the remains of five victims already killed by the terrorists were also recovered at the scene,” the army said. “The fleeing terrorists are believed to have sustained significant casualties, as evidenced by blood trails along their escape routes.” Kaduna has continued to record attacks on churches and frequent abductions. In January, more than 150 worshippers were abducted from Kurmin Wali, a village in Kaduna’s Kajuru area about 60 kilometres from Sunday’s attack.

Similar attacks on churches have sparked allegations of the persecution of Christians by US President Donald Trump and some American lawmakers, which the Nigerian government has rejected. The US government launched military strikes in Sokoto on December 25, allegedly targeting an Islamic State group in the region.

The Nigerian government has rejected the characterisation of the country’s escalating security crises as a “Christian genocide”.