Fulani herdsmen murder 96 people in Benue

No less than, 96 individuals were killed in Benue State when a few towns were assaulted by suspected Fulani herders, a state police representative and an armed force source said on Tuesday.

Hundreds are murdered every year in conflicts setting the semi-itinerant, steers grouping Fulani individuals against more settled groups that practice a mix of farming and cows rearing. The conflicts are constantly driven by disputes on the use of land.

A senior military officer said fighting around five towns lasted a few days in the Logo Local Government Area of Benue.

Police representative, Austine Ezeani, said a mobile police unit was sent in the range. The turmoil is frequently seen as sectarian in nature since Fulani are Muslim and the groups with which they are in clash in the Central Nigeria have a tendency to be Christian.

Nigerian troops battled militiamen in early may May, after handfuls were slaughtered in towns on the border of middle belt states, Plateau and Taraba.