MAKURDI, Nigeria — Governor Hyacinth Alia of Benue State on Sunday, June 15, 2025, confirmed that at least 59 people were killed in Yelwata, a border community attacked by suspected herdsmen from neighbouring Nasarawa State, in one of the deadliest incidents in the region this year.
Addressing journalists at the Benue Government House, Governor Alia said the figure was based on a physical headcount carried out by security agencies in collaboration with families of the deceased.
Among those killed were members of the military and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), who died defending the town.
The attack, which occurred on Friday, June 14, 2025, targeted Yelwata, a town straddling the boundary between Benue and Nasarawa states.
According to local officials, a woman was also killed on the Nasarawa side of the border.
Governor Alia acknowledged the assistance of his Nasarawa counterpart, Governor Abdullahi Sule, who provided intelligence on the attack.
“I thank Governor Sule for his efforts in providing information and ensuring communication between both states during this tragedy,” Alia said.
The governor made the remarks while receiving a report from a panel of inquiry into militia activity in the Sankera axis — a region plagued by years of armed violence.
He pledged to investigate and bring to justice those named in the report, promising to forward its contents to relevant authorities.
The attack has triggered outrage across Benue.
On Sunday, June 15, 2025, angry youths staged a protest at the Wurukum food basket roundabout in Makurdi, demanding action from both state and federal authorities.
They were later joined by social media influencer Martin Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, who has used his platform to spotlight insecurity in Nigeria’s rural communities.
In response to the escalating violence, presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga issued a statement reiterating President Bola Tinubu’s directive to security chiefs to restore law and order in the state.
“On the president’s directive, intelligence chiefs, the police and the military have arrived in the state to direct security operations and restore sanity,” the statement said.
The President had earlier described the killings as “inhuman and anti-progress,” calling on local political and community leaders to avoid inflammatory language and to promote peace.
He also tasked Governor Alia with leading reconciliation efforts among farmers, herders, and affected communities.
The attack has drawn international concern as well. During his remarks before the traditional Angelus prayer at the Vatican on Sunday, June 15, 2025, Pope Francis expressed sorrow over the killings and the continuing violence in Nigeria.
“I pray for security, justice, and peace to prevail in the country,” the pontiff said, offering special intercession for rural Christian communities in Benue, who he described as “relentless victims of violence.”
