At least 19 people were killed, an unknown number injured and an estimated 4000 displaced when armed Fulani troops attacked the villages of Mafang and Zilang in the Kaura area of southern Kaduna state on Easter.
According to local intelligence, armed men dressed in black surrounded the villages on March 30 and then began an attack that lasted until Easter Sunday. Many villagers fled into the surrounding hills. Some who returned to inspect the damage were also killed. The majority of the victims were women and children. The attackers also destroyed a large number of houses. Many of those displaced are reportedly staying at the local Amisi Primary School and in the nearby villages of Fadan Attakar and Mifi.
Pastor Yunusa Nmadu, Executive Director of CSW Nigeria, said: "We ask for prayers for and send our condolences to the families of all those who lost their lives in the tragic events of last week. We also call on the relevant state governments to provide urgent assistance to the injured and displaced. The systematic occurrence of these attacks indicates a higher degree of organization than has been the case in the past, and an immediate reassessment of strategy and an increase in the number of troops sent to these areas is necessary."
Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) learned that over a month ago, a local chief allowed Fulani troops to settle on a piece of land on a hillside near the village of Kirim after they were ordered to leave the Zangon Kataf region, also in southern Kaduna, after Fulani attacked the village of Aduwan. In the past few weeks, locals had started asking questions after it became known that Fulani were storing weapons in the area.
The attack on the villages in Kaduna came in the same week as a series of attacks on villages in Wase and Riyom in neighboring Plateau State in which at least 60 people, mostly women and children, lost their lives, leading to heightened tensions in the community. Previously, attacks in Riyom had claimed 16 lives over a two-month period.
Mervyn Thomas, Executive Director of CSW in the UK, said: "Although armed Fulani have sporadically attacked remote villages since 2010, it appears that the recent escalation of attacks on villagers on the Plateau-Kaduna border, the consistent targeting of women and children and the mass displacement of inhabitants are part of a deliberate attempt to cleanse these areas of indigenous people. It is worrying that armed forces can still move freely and carry out prolonged attacks despite the security presence in each state. In order to deal with this problem effectively, a comprehensive and concerted effort by the governments of Kaduna, Plateau and even Bauchi is needed to track down and apprehend the perpetrators."
