The military and the police have launched a joint, cross-border manhunt for the gunmen who killed around 200 villagers in Yelewata, Guma Local Government Area of Benue State, last Friday night.
Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa and Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Kayode Egbetokun arrived in Makurdi and Yelewata on Monday to coordinate the operation that would target the suspected killers.
After assessing the carnage, Musa vowed to take the battle to the terrorists by changing the military’s strategy to fit the situation on the ground.
However, given the manner of the attack, he expressed concerns that the attackers are operating with help from within the community.
The Defence Chief told the media in Yelewata: ‘In every society, including the military, there are always people who compromise. I promise to meet with the commanders and find ways to change our strategies.
“In my estimation, it is one killing too many. We’re here to ensure that we address such. From here, I’m going to see my commanders, and we are going to change our strategies to look inwards and see how we can address this. We cannot do it alone without the community’.
Musa called for community support, arguing that the Armed Forces’ efforts will not yield much without it.
He said: ‘There may be trust issues that we are going to address. For us, we want this to be the last that would happen.
‘We need everybody to be part of it, we understand that even before now we used to have even within us, people that used to compromise and give out information.
‘If you see the way some of the burnings were made, you know that they were targeted. It shows they have insiders’.
The CDS also acknowledged the porous borders between Nasarawa and Benue States and promised to meet with the Nasarawa State Governor to discuss how to tackle the challenge.
He explained: ‘I want to assure Nigerians, the whole Benue State, and all over the country, that we are determined, based on the mandate of Mr. President, that we will restore peace and tranquillity within the country.
‘We always have information that these people are coming from across borders; wherever they come from, we will go after them.
‘We must take the battle to them, we must not wait for them to attack, and that is what I think. It is very critical that tomorrow (Tuesday) we proceed to Nasarawa State because the borders are actually very critical to the success of what we are doing.”
While urging the youths to support the military, Musa sought support from every Nigerian too.
‘We need Nigerians to support us. We must work together as a team. For the youths, please don’t give up. This is our country; we can never give up our country for anything. And this madness must stop’, he said.
Gunmen stormed Yelewata village in Guma Local Government Areas late Friday, unleashing one of the deadliest assaults the state has seen in years.
Amnesty International and local official reports say that at least 100 residents were killed, dozens remain missing, and hundreds nursing gunshot and burn wounds after attackers set houses ablaze through the early hours of Saturday.
Local police confirmed the raid but have not issued a final casualty figure, while emergency workers say many victims were internally displaced people who had taken refuge in the village after earlier attacks.
The state government has launched a manhunt, but residents fear reprisals as the rainy season, peak period for disputed grazing and planting, sets in.
It is the latest cycle of violence linked to farmer-herder tensions, banditry and a security vacuum that rights groups say allows perpetrators to act with “utter impunity.
IGP Egbetokun described the attacks as a threat to the nation’s sovereignty.
In Makurdi, the state capital, he commiserated with the government and people of Benue over the killings. He said that, though the criminal elements and bandits had hitherto operated in the state with impunity, he vowed that it was time to stop the bloodshed.
‘These mindless acts of terror are not just attacks on Benue people, but they are attacks on the sovereignty and integrity of the nation. An attack on any community of Nigeria is an attack on the entire country.
‘The criminal elements and bandits might have operated here with impunity in the past but a day is fast approaching when they would come to attack but would never return.
‘That day is fast approaching and I can assure you that we would continue to protect lives and property in the state’, the police chief said.
Egbetokun said that. while his men may be too few to cover the entire territory due to its vast terrain, more officers would be deployed to protect lives and property.
He said: ‘We are aware of the vast terrain of Benue State and the security challenges it presents. We might not be able to cover every inch of the place, but we will deploy adequately to ensure the protection of lives and property in Benue.
‘I want to assure you that the Nigerian Police Force will stand with you and the entire people of Benue state on this. We are going to work closely with you and in close synergy with other security agencies to ensure that lasting peace return to Benue state.
‘We will support the state with all of our resources and synergize with other security agencies to defeat these evils’, he vowed.
Appreciating the IGP for his support, Governor Hyacinth Alia lamented that Benue State was in mourning not only for Friday’s attacks, but also those preceding it.
‘We are bleeding, we are in sorrow. I believe your visit is going to uplift our spirits and build within us formidable assurance of the fact that we are not alone but that you will be there for us.
‘But I’m confident that once our victims feel your presence, it will rekindle hope in them as well.
‘We are hopeful that with all hands on deck, we would become victorious and the sorrowful narrative we share today would become a thing of the past’, he said.
The governor, who acknowledged the last two as ‘trying’ for the people of the state, expressed optimism that with the support of President Bola Tinubu and all security agencies, peace will return to the state.
‘There has been an upsurge of attacks recently. We have not rested in the last two months’, he further said.
Meanwhile, President Bola Tinubu, on Monday rescheduled his official visit to Kaduna State, earlier slated for Wednesday.
Instead, he will travel to Benue State on the same date as part of renewed efforts to foster peace and address the persistent conflict affecting communities in the state. He will visit Kaduna the next day.
During his stay, President Tinubu will meet with all stakeholders — including traditional rulers, political, religious, community leaders, and youth groups—to seek lasting solutions to the hostilities.
The President had earlier condemned the ongoing violence in the state and called on leaders and residents to embrace peace, love, and mutual understanding.
