More than 200 people, including women and children, were gruesomely killed on Saturday night in Yelwata community, Guma Local Government Area of Benue State, by gunmen suspected to be herdsmen militia known locally as Lakurawa.
The attackers, armed with sophisticated weapons, invaded the community from both the eastern and western flanks around 11 p.m., catching residents in their sleep. According to eyewitnesses and community leaders, entire families were wiped out as houses and market stalls sheltering displaced persons were set ablaze.
Matthew Mnyan, a prominent community leader and former acting Chairman of the Benue State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), described the attack as well-planned and coordinated. “They came from two sides and overran the community. People were shot, burned alive, and children had their throats slit like animals,” he said during a phone interview from Makurdi.
Mnyan said most of those killed were Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) who had fled previous attacks in Nasarawa State and were sleeping in market stalls. “Entire families—men, their wives, and children—were burnt together. Some bodies are unrecognisable.”
The President of the Association of United Farmers Benue Valley (AUFBV), Chief Dennis Gbongbon, who was present during the aftermath, confirmed that most victims were Tiv farmers who had sought refuge in Yelwata. He said over 62 bodies of IDPs were counted, and many more are still missing.
Meanwhile, two soldiers were reportedly killed in a separate but related attack in the Daudu area of the same local government. Security sources say five other soldiers were killed earlier while repelling terrorists near Daudu, where over 200 armed men were said to be camped.
Chief Joseph Har, Special Adviser to Governor Hyacinth Alia on Security and Internal Affairs, confirmed both attacks but noted that an official death toll had not yet been established.
The Police Public Relations Officer for Benue State, DSP Udeme Edet, also confirmed the incident, saying investigations were ongoing.
This latest massacre comes amid ongoing clashes between farming communities and suspected herdsmen militias in Benue, a state that has long struggled with land conflicts and displacement. Despite repeated calls for help, communities in Guma and other affected areas continue to suffer large-scale attacks.
Local leaders are now calling for urgent federal intervention and stronger military presence to stop what they describe as an attempt to take over ancestral farmlands.
