Nigeria: Killing of Christians continues, no arrests made

After Fulani militants in Plateau State, Nigeria killed 21 Christians and critically injured more than 10, local sources told ACN that attacks against Christians are becoming more common, and perpetrators are rarely punished.

The most recent attack occurred on August 10th, in the early morning, when armed Fulani herdsmen set fire to a community of displaced Christians near the city of Jos in northern Nigeria.

Masara Kim, a journalist based in Jos, told Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) that after setting the fires, the extremists aimed their assault rifles at people trying to flee.

Kim, who later visited the scene, explained that the victims had been “previously displaced from the surrounding villages,” and that half of the victims were “burnt beyond recognition.” At least five of them were infants.

“It was a heartbreaking scene,” he said. “They were given a mass burial in a rain-soaked grave. These are poor villagers who don’t have money for food, much less coffins.” Kim added that while there are witnesses, many of whom saw their family members slaughtered, authorities will likely fail to identify the terrorists, as is usually the case.

Father Polycarp Lubo, chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria in Plateau State, said that “systematic killings” like these “have a long history” in the region.

Father Lubo called for a proper investigation but conceded that those in power are rarely willing “to say what’s going on,” and that Nigerian authorities have not done anything to help Christians displaced due to violence.  

According to Kim, the deadliest attack of the year took place May 15 and 16, when Fulani militants killed more than 200 Christians in Mangu, a government area south of Jos. Both he and Father Lubo believe that the attacks are motivated in part by a desire for land, as well as ethnic and religious hostility.

—Amy Balog