Gunmen suspected to be Fulani militia on Friday night, attacked the Rawaru community of Barkin Ladi local government area of Plateau State, killing eight people and injuring several others in the process.
A youth leader in the community, Solomon Dalyop, who also confirmed the killings, told journalists that they made distress calls to security operatives during the attack but help did not come throughout the duration of the attack which lasted for several hours.
“We have confirmed that eight persons were killed during the attack last night in Rawuru community in Barkin Ladi LGA,” he said.
“What we don’t understand is that before the attack took place, some soldiers came to the village in the afternoon. We also saw them in the night. During the attack which lasted for several hours, we made distress calls to them but they did not respond.
“And yet, the villagers were attacked leading to the killing of the victims who were in their homes.
“How come the Fulani people will carry out the attacks successfully without being apprehended by the soldiers and the security agents who are also within the community?”
The President of Global Society for Middle Belt Heritage, Jerry Datim, who is also a leader in the affected community, who confirmed the incident on Saturday, said the fully armed assailants invaded the community while the people had retured for the night and shot sporadically.
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In a statement on behalf of the group, Datim accused the Special Taskforce of the Nigerian Army in charge of maintaining security in the state of not doing enough to secure the lives of the people.
Datim described the attacks as one too many and called for an investigation into the activities of the personnel of the Taskforce deployed to maintain peace in Plateau communities.
