The violence in Plateau State has been denounced by President Bola Tinubu, who has urged the state’s leadership to resolve the ongoing intercommunal disputes in a sustainable manner.
Two weeks after violent skirmishes in another area of the state left many people dead, gunmen murdered at least 51 people and injured dozens more in the early hours of Monday in the settlements of Zikke and Kakpa in Bassa Local Government Area in the North Central state.
The National Emergency Agency reported last week that over several days of attacks on the Plateau, which has a history of violence between farmers and cattle herders, gunmen had murdered at least 52 people and displaced about 2,000 more.
According to locals, 51 dead were found in the villages of Zikke and Kimakpa in the Bassa district of the Plateau on Monday, while many more were apparently wounded.
It was not immediately clear what caused the strike.
“We cannot allow this devastation and the tit-for-tat attacks to continue. Enough is enough,” Tinubu said in a statement signed Monday by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
The statement is titled ‘President Tinubu condemns latest attack in Plateau, charges Governor Mutfwang to resolve underlying communal issues.’
Tinubu conveyed his deep sadness over the carnage and offered his sympathies to the Plateau people, the state administration, and Governor Caleb Mutfwang.
“The continuous violence between communities in Plateau State, which is rooted in miscommunications between various ethnic and religious groups, must end,” the president stated.
He thus urged the governor to show political will in resolving the fundamental communal problems that are causing the violence and bringing about lasting peace.
“Beyond dealing with the criminal elements of these incessant killings, the political leadership in Plateau State, led by Governor Caleb Mutfwang, must address the root cause of this age-long problem.
“These problems have been with us for more than two decades. We can no longer ignore the underlying issues.
“It is time to tackle them fairly and find a lasting solution. I have discussed these problems with the governor over time and offered suggestions for lasting peace,” Tinubu asserted.
He underlined how crucial it is to promote harmony and togetherness across racial and religious divides.
In order to stop the cycle of retaliatory assaults that are destroying impacted communities, Tinubu also urged political, religious, and community leaders inside and outside of Plateau State to cooperate.
He said, “I have instructed security agencies to thoroughly investigate this crisis and identify those responsible for orchestrating these violent acts.”
President Tinubu reiterated the Federal Government’s commitment to supporting the Plateau State government in fostering dialogue, social cohesion, and accountability, crucial steps towards permanently resolving the conflict.
“The Federal Government remains committed to supporting Governor Mutfwang and the Plateau State government in promoting dialogue, fostering social cohesion, and ensuring accountability—crucial steps towards permanently resolving the conflict in Plateau,” he concluded.
Joseph Chudu, a local youth leader, verified the attack to The Intercept in Jos, which started at approximately 12 a.m. on Monday.
Chudu said that a huge group of gunmen broke into the neighbourhood, shot, and set fire to people’s homes.
Chudu said, “The attack lasted for more than one hour. Many who sustained injuries have been evacuated to the Jos University Teaching Hospital .Please, we need blood for the injured.”
Amnesty International Nigeria said the gunmen also razed and looted homes.
“The inexcusable security lapses that enabled this horrific attack, two weeks after the killing of 52 people, must be investigated,” Amnesty said in a statement.
Plateau is one of many religiously and ethnically diverse hinterland states that make up Nigeria’s Middle Belt. In recent years, hundreds of people have died as a result of intercommunal warfare in these regions.
The violence between Muslim herders and primarily Christian farmers is frequently portrayed as an ethnoreligious conflict. However, two other significant effects are the increase of agriculture and the loss of grazing pasture due to climate change.
Youths Condemn Killings
Citing the ongoing attacks on Plateau villages, the Berom Youth Moulders Association urged the Federal Government to designate Fulani militants as a terrorist group.
The organisation denounced Monday’s attack on Zikke and Kakpa villages in Bassa Local Government Area, which resulted in the deaths of over fifty people, as well as the murders in Hurti, Bokkos, and Irigwe Kimakpa.
In a statement issued in Jos on Monday and jointly signed by its National President, Solomon Mwantiri, and General Secretary, Bature Adazaram, the BYM stated, “The BYM is saddened by the systemic premeditated killings of unsuspecting residents of Bokkos and Bassa, especially another round of bloodbath witnessed last night, 12th April, 2025 that claimed no fewer than 50 innocent villagers, including women and children in Bassa LGA without any just cause known to the armless populace.
“According to information available to us, the armed Fulani militants, who attacked Kimakpa and Zike villages of Kwall in Iriggwe Chiefdom last night, at about 8 pm of Sunday was carried out while Plateau State is yet to recover from the genocide meted out on villages of Hurti community, Bokkos LGA on the 2nd April, 2025 which is unarguably an act of terrorism that confirms a virally circulated video credited to the terror actors, who vowed to make the security situation unbearable in the state.
The group also called for legislation allowing Nigerians to acquire arms for self-defence.
Soldiers rescue passengers
Troops of the 3 Division, Nigerian Army, and Operation Safe Haven in Plateau State have rescued 16 passengers who were kidnapped along the Jos-Mangu road.
It was learnt that the rescue operation was initiated on Sunday night, around 9 pm, after troops discovered an abandoned vehicle at Mararaban Kantoma in Mangu Local Government Area of the state.
The spokesman for the Operation Safe Haven, Major Samson Zhakom, confirmed the development in a statement on Monday saying that upon discovering the abandoned vehicle, troops immediately searched the nearby bushes and found the kidnappers holding the passengers captive.
