Many residents die as suspected herders attack Ebonyi community

Armed men suspected to be herders on Sunday morning attacked the Amegu Nkalagha community in Ishielu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, killing many residents and burning down houses.

The incident is believed to be a reprisal following the killing of some cattle belonging to the herders in the area.

A member of the community, Ndubuisi Idenyi, a professor, confirmed the attack to PREMIUM TIMES on Sunday.

Mr Idenyi, a former chairperson of the Academic Staff Union of University, Ebonyi State University Chapter, said the herders attacked the community in the early hours on Sunday, killing many people and burning down houses.

“I don’t have the number of casualties right now. We are still tracking and bringing out the dead bodies, especially those killed in the farms,” he said.

A source said a Pentecostal pastor in the area was among those killed in the attack.

The source, who pleaded anonymity, said the community members were not responsible for the killing of the cattle.

“We did not kill their cows. The cows were killed by members of the IPOB’s Eastern Security Network in the forest,” the source said.

While confirming the incident, the Chairperson of Ishielu Council, Ifeoma Agwu, said, “We are taking the bodies to the mortuary. I cannot talk much on it now.”

PREMIUM TIMES could not immediately reach the police spokesperson in Ebonyi, Joshua Ukandu, for comment.

Herders and insecurity in South-east

Herders’ activities in Nigeria’s South-east have remained one of the major causes of insecurity in the region, with many killings and destruction, especially of farmlands, attributed to them.

Frequent clashes have occurred between herders and farmers across the region and other parts of the country, as cattle often walk through farmlands and destroy crops.

After a series of attacks some years ago on some communities in Ishielu and Ohaukwu local government areas of Ebonyi, most herders quietly relocated from the state for fear of reprisals.

However, some herders would sometimes come back into Ebonyi through the neighbouring Enugu State.

There have been calls for adopting a ranching system in Nigeria to solve deadly clashes between herders and farmers.