No fewer than 30 people were reportedly killed and 25 others injured when gunmen suspected to be Fulani herdsmen ran over Shonong community in Bachit district of Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau state. Among the victims were children, women and the elderly.
The latest round of killings followed the murder of the acting village head of Attarkar and that of Shonong village two days before Christmas.
However Plateau State Police commissioner, Mr. Chris Olakpe, said that only four people were killed and some houses burnt.
But our correspondent gathered from eye witnesses that apart from those killed, over 40 houses were torched. Also affected were domestic animals belonging to the villagers.
It was gathered that Shonong, consisting of four villages, was attacked around 7am on Monday. The attackers were said to have stormed the villages in commando-like style, shooting sporadically.
Shom Toma, one of the survivors who is receiving medical treatment at the Vom Christian Hospital, told newsmen that the attackers stormed the village at about 7am in their hundreds at a time most of the villagers had gone to their farms.
Toma said he was moulding block around his house when he heard the sound of the booming guns and had to run for dear life.
Executive Director of Stefanos Foundation, Mr. Mark Lipdo, said that information available to him indicated that bodies were strewn all over the village, adding that eye witnesses said that the dead could be over 30.
He said that a search team was still ongoing round the villages to retrieve more bodies as many of the victims who sustained serious injuries ran into the bush.
Member Representing Riyom constituency, Mr. Daniel Dem, who confirmed the incident and the casualty figure, described it as unfortunate and regrettable.
Dem, who is the Majority Leader of the Plateau State House of Assembly, regretted that the presence of the Special Task Force in the area had not stemmed the tide of killings in the area.
He said, “If the military are there in the village and the attack took place at about 8am and lasted to afternoon, then the military have so many questions to answer.”