“Tragedy in Plateau: 13 Killed, Homes Burnt in Coordinated Attacks on Bokkos and Mangu”

At least 13 people—mostly children and the elderly—were killed and several homes set ablaze in renewed attacks by suspected herdsmen on Juwan and Manja communities in Bokkos and Mangu Local Government Areas of Plateau State.

The first attack occurred late Thursday night in Juwan, a village in the Tangur District of Bokkos LGA, where 10 people were killed and several others sustained serious injuries. Most of the victims were either too young or too frail to flee as the attackers moved from house to house, according to local officials.

In a separate assault the same day, armed men struck Manja community in Chafem Chiefdom, Mangu LGA, killing three people who were working on their farms. Others managed to escape after a distress call prompted the swift intervention of security operatives.

The Chairman of Bokkos Local Government Council, Amalau Samuel, confirmed the incident to Channels Television, describing the coordinated attacks as “barbaric and inhuman.”

“The attackers came late at night and started killing innocent people, going from house to house. Where they couldn’t enter through the door, they broke in through the ceiling,” Samuel said. “The victims were mostly the elderly and children who couldn’t escape. The agile ones fled into the night.”

In the Manja attack, over 20 houses were torched after security personnel repelled the first onslaught. The assailants returned later that same day, setting the community ablaze in a second wave of violence.

Matthew Kwarpo, member representing Mangu South in the Plateau State House of Assembly, said the community was overwhelmed by the attackers’ numbers. “People had to flee for safety. Thankfully, there was no casualty in the second attack, but the displacement is massive,” he said.

Kwarpo raised concerns over repeated warnings issued by the attackers before they strike, noting that most threats had been followed through without fail.

“The security agencies are doing their best, but they’re being overwhelmed,” Kwarpo added. “This appears to be a calculated effort to forcefully take over our lands. We are urgently calling on President Bola Tinubu to intervene.”

Communities across Bokkos, Bassa, and Mangu LGAs have been reeling from a surge in attacks attributed to suspected herdsmen. These recurring incidents have left a trail of death, destruction, and mass displacement, raising urgent questions about the capacity of security forces to stem the violence and protect vulnerable rural populations.