Benue State government on Monday imposed a 24 hour-curfew on Katsina-Ala town in the state.
Daily Trust reports that fear escalated in the rural town as five more persons were said to be kidnapped on Sunday after 11 people were allegedly killed by local militias in Ngibo and Tse-Aye villages in Ikyurav-Tiev 1, a council ward in Katsina-Ala local government area of the state on Saturday.
The gunmen were also said to have carted away 28 cattle belonging to one Barr. Agwaza Atedze at the wake of the crisis at weekend when they killed four persons at Ngibo village and another seven persons at Tse Aye village, totalling eleven.
But as the violence spread across the area with the burning of houses, the inhabitants of Kastina-Ala town were said to have deserted their homes, a development which may have propelled the state government to impose the curfew.
The acting governor of the state, Engr. Benson Abounu, who announced the curfew, said it takes effect from today, Monday, April 22, 2019 as part of efforts to restore peace and ensure the security of lives and property in that part of the state.
He said the curfew, which takes immediate effect from the time of its announcement at mid-day shall be reviewed as the situation demands, urging, the people of Katsina-Ala to cooperate with security operatives by obeying the order.
The governor warns that anyone found fomenting trouble in the area or in other parts of the state will be apprehended and punished according to law.
He however reassures the people that more security personnel have been deployed to Katsina-Ala to end the crisis.
Earlier, the Force Commander of the Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS), Maj. Gen. Adeyemi Yekini, had said that the crisis which led to Saturday’s killing was between the Shitile and Ikyurav people of the area, adding that his troops were already in the area to maintain peace, law and order.
