Eight people were killed, about eleven were missing and over 20 sustained injuries while several shops were razed following a reprisal attack lunched by Tiv youths on Hausa community in Makurdi, the state capital of Benue state.
The Sarkin Hausawa of Makurdi, Alhaji Bello Sallau Abdurrahman, who confirmed the incident in a telephone interview with Daily Trust, in Abuja, on Thursday, said the attack occurred in the state capital and was targeted at Hausa people.
“On Tuesday, we saw our people running helter-skelter in the city that they brought the corpses of Church priests that were allegedly killed at Dukwayango village and then suddenly Tiv youth started killing our people. As I am talking to you, they have killed over eight people, over 20 sustained injuries and several shops were razed while over eleven people are missing”.
Abdurrahaman who said Hausa people were living in palpable fear with their families added that the Tiv youth have allegedly continue killing his people with impunity.
He wondered why Hausa people should be targeted since they are not the herdsmen that lunched the attacks in the state.
According to him, Hausa people have lived in Benue state for donkey years and they are peace loving people.
“We are not famers, we don’t rear animal. We are just traders that focused on our businesses. These things happened in villages and in the bushes, why are Tiv youth then killing our people?”
He said that he has been making efforts to maintain peace by telling his people not to take arms against anybody.
He called on Federal Government to respond quickly before the crisis escalates to the other parts of the state.
He appealed to the Federal Government to compensate his subjects that lost their wealth and the families that lost their loves ones as a result of the attack.