The community of Tyoshin in Gwer West Local Government Area, Benue State, is once again mourning after suspected armed herders launched a violent assault along the Naka-Makurdi road on Friday. The attack left five individuals, who were en route to seek medical care, dead in what marks another chapter of bloodshed in the region.
In a statement by the Forum of Tyoshin Academics, led by Professors Patrick Ukase and John Ajai, the community revealed that over 511 lives have been lost to similar attacks since 2011. The period from 2011 to 2017 saw 192 deaths, with an alarming rise in violence between 2018 and 2023, claiming an additional 302 lives. This year alone, 17 people have been killed, with many others missing or unaccounted for.
The forum described the recent assault as part of a broader trend of violence, with nine council wards in the Gwer-West area already devastated by attacks. Days before the Friday incident, three lives were also lost in nearby Camp-Nagi, Mbachohon.
The community expressed frustration over the inaction of both the Federal Government and Benue State Government, despite repeated pleas for intervention. Military presence in the area has been largely ineffective, leaving residents feeling abandoned and unprotected.
The Forum appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Governor Hyacinth Iormen Alia for immediate action, warning that without intervention, Tyoshin may continue to suffer in silence as violence further erodes the once-thriving community.
The situation remains dire as the people of Tyoshin live in fear of more attacks, mourning the loss of lives and facing an uncertain future.
