Following one among the worst massacres Nigeria has seen lately, Christians within the country have demanded that the federal government do more to guard them from Fulani and Islamist militants.
Last week over 200 people were killed when militants launched an attack on, amongst other targets, a mission station housing internally displaced people. Unusually the Nigerian police were in a position to fight off the attackers, nonetheless they weren’t well equipped enough to stop them turning their attention to the market area.
The militants proceeded to burn people, houses and other buildings in a brutal orgy of violence.
Attacks have grow to be common, especially during Christian festivals resembling Easter and Christmas. The security services have often been criticised for his or her failure to stop such attacks, even in cases where advance warning has been given.
The governor of Benue State, where the attack took place, Father Hyacinth Alia said the state was effectively under siege and that the situation had grow to be “disastrous”.
Jo Newhouse, spokesperson for Open Doors in sub-Saharan Africa, said, “For this pattern of attack on mostly Christian villages to proceed without restraint is completely unacceptable.
“Christians within the Middle Belt of Nigeria have to know their government is willing to do what is required to secure their safety of all her residents, no matter their ethnicity or religion.”
Newhouse also called for compensation for the survivors of such attacks, 1000’s of whom have been displaced from their homes and echoed previous demands that the international community do more to get motion from the Nigerian government.
Following the attack last week, a Catholic priest told Aid to the Church in Need that he had escaped from the violence, but that his congregation had dropped from 500 to only 20. The missing members had either been killed or forced to flee.
Earlier this 12 months a Catholic bishop told the British House of Lords that economic and political relations between Britain and Nigeria needs to be made conditional on the latter taking motion to guard its residents from militants.
The bishop also added that deadly attacks at Christmas and Easter had already grow to be “customary” within the country.
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