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Plateau survivors recounts lynching as reprisals as reprisals fuel fresh killings

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Plateau survivors recounts lynching as reprisals as reprisals fuel fresh killings

By: Zagazola Makama

A survivor of the recent roadside killings in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau has narrated how five commuters from Jos North were killed after their vehicle was intercepted by suspected youths along the Nding axis.

The incident occurred hours after seven persons were reportedly killed in Ratatis community, Dorowa Babuje, by suspected armed Fulani bandits.

Sources confirmed that a passenger Opel Vectra conveying civilians was stopped at a road blockade mounted by suspected Berom youths. Four passengers were reportedly killed on the spot, while a fifth later died from injuries.
All the victims were identified as Hausa residents of Gangare in Jos North. They were said to be traders travelling to Pankshin for their businesses.

Abdulalim Ibrahim, one of the survivors, said the attackers demanded to know their identities before opening fire.

“We were heading to the market in Pankshin when we were stopped by the protesters and asked who we were. The driver tried to calm them and told them we were all one. But the protesters rejected. Suddenly, there was gunfire. One person sitting at the back seat was shot inside the car while four others were dragged out by the youths,” he said.

They dragged others out of the vehicle and began shooting at them. I immediately told the driver to drive off with speed and leave the scene. When we arrived in Mangu, we contacted our parents and family friends. We were advised to go to the nearest security outfit, where soldiers were attached to provide security for us.

When we later saw the victims, they had been brutally killed. Some were burnt, while others were mutilated. They were later evacuated to Barkin Ladi, where prayers were offered for them.

Muazu Saidu, Co-survivor, said Everything he said is true. We were all in that vehicle. The victims were innocent businessmen. One of them, Baba Karami Zakari, had just welcomed a newborn child. All of them have families.”

He stated that the victims included Uwaisu, Jubril, Zakari, Shamsu and Zubairu. They were businessmen. One of them, Baba Karami Zakari, just had a newborn child. They all had families,” he said.

Religious leaders have also appealed for calm. The Regional Chairman of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN) in Barkin Ladi, Rev. Ezekiel Dachomo, called on youths and community members to exercise restraint and avoid escalating tensions. Rev Dachomo also avoid speaking about the killing of the five traders whose only crimes was being caught in retaliatory or identity-driven violence.

The Commissioner of Police (COMPOL), Plateau State Police Command, visited key black spots across Jos North and held consultations with stakeholders, including the palace of Ujah Anaguta, Chairman of the Jos North Traditional Rulers Council. The police assured the royal father of their commitment to maintaining law and order and urged him to ensure stability within his domain. The COMPOL also engaged leadership of the Jos Central Mosque, the Executive Chairman of Jos North LGA, and other community leaders to prevent any breakdown of law and order.

Gov. Caleb Mutfwang strongly condemned the Dorowa Babuje killings, through the Commissioner for Information, Mrs Joyce Ramnap, describing them as “barbaric and senseless,” and directed security agencies to intensify operations to crack down on attackers.

However, his official statement did not specifically acknowledge the five commuters killed in the reprisal. Both incidents involved civilians. Both involved families. Yet public response has not appeared equally forceful.

When governments appear to condemn one set of killings more loudly than another, it reinforces the narrative that some lives matter more than others. In a state already fractured along ethnic and land-based fault lines, perception quickly becomes fuel. In Plateau, violence no longer erupts in isolation. It unfolds in patterns, attack, retaliation, silence, and then another burial.

Plateau’s crisis is no longer a simple farmer-herder conflict. It has mutated into two parallel but interconnected threats: Armed Fulani bandits who raid rural communities, burn homes and kill farmers to Local Militia-style who attack civilians based on identity and carry out targeted killing under the guise of community protection. Both are unlawful. Both are criminal. Both are banditry and both thrive in the absence of swift and visible justice.

The latest killings mirror previous incidents in Plateau where civilians were attacked following broader communal violence. Yet years of the same pattern of recurring violence, from Rukuba Road in 2021 to Mangu in 2025 and now Barkin Ladi in 2026, have produced more funerals than convictions. Victims and families continue to ask a simple question: who has been punished?

On Plateau roads, language, name, or perceived ethnic affiliation can determine survival. Innocent traders travelling to markets, students heading to weddings, worshippers returning from religious events, all become symbolic targets in a war they did not start.

When perpetrators are not publicly prosecuted, deterrence collapses. When local militia continue to carry out targeted killings without consequence, impunity becomes normalised. When reprisals are not unequivocally condemned, they are quietly rationalised. This is how identity becomes a death sentence.

Government inaction or even the perception of partiality does not calm such a situation. It complicates it. It hardens narratives. It emboldens extremists on all sides. Peace cannot be selective. Justice cannot be ethnic. Condemnation cannot be conditional.

If Plateau is to escape this recurring nightmare, the state must confront both armed bandits in the forests and militia from within its communities with equal firmness. Anything less will only deepen the crisis.

Plateau survivors recounts lynching as reprisals as reprisals fuel fresh killings

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Zulum Delivers Relief, Cash Support to 434 Ngoshe Residents Rescued from Boko Haram

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Zulum Delivers Relief, Cash Support to 434 Ngoshe Residents Rescued from Boko Haram

By: Our Reporter

Borno State Government has distributed relief materials to 434 indigenes of Ngoshe community in Gwoza Local Government Area who were recently rescued by security agencies after spending three months in Boko Haram captivity.

Governor Babagana Umara Zulum visited the victims in Pulka on Monday and directed the immediate distribution of food and non-food items to support their recovery and reintegration.

In compliance with the Governor’s directive, the Director General of the Borno State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Alhaji Ali Abdullahi Isa, promptly supervised the distribution exercise.

Each rescued person received a bag of rice, a bag of maize grits, a mattress, a wrapper, and a shadda, while children received two pairs of clothing.

In addition, 208 heads of households received N50,000 each, fulfilling Governor Zulum’s earlier pledge of financial assistance.

Speaking during the distribution, the SEMA Director General said the intervention was part of the government’s immediate response to ease the hardship faced by the rescued victims.

“I am here at the instance of His Excellency, Governor Babagana Umara Zulum, who was here some few days ago, and to deliver the items he directed that it should be given to you as emergency relief,” Ali stated.

The rescued individuals are currently receiving medical care and psychosocial support at a government facility. Upon completion of the rehabilitation process, they will be reintegrated into their respective communities.

The exercise was carried out alongside the Chairman of Gwoza local government, representatives of the Ngoshe community, and other officials.

Zulum Delivers Relief, Cash Support to 434 Ngoshe Residents Rescued from Boko Haram

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Democracy Day: Zulum gives 2 MRAPs, other logistics to Army, celebrates with IDPs

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Democracy Day: Zulum gives 2 MRAPs, other logistics to Army, celebrates with IDPs

By: Michael Mike

Borno State Governor, Babagana Umara Zulum, marked Democracy Day with the handover of two Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles and critical logistics to the Nigerian Army, after joining internally displaced persons (IDPs) for a symbolic celebration and distribution of food items to 2,500 beneficiaries.

The armoured MRAPs delivered to the Theatre Command of Operation Hadin Kai on Friday are intended to enhance troop protection against improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and ambushes which remain a persistent threat in the fight against insurgents. Additional logistics include operational Hilux vehicles and motorcycles for frontline soldiers in difficult terrains.

Zulum also marked Nigeria’s Democracy Day celebration with Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) at the Madinatu camp where he distributed food supplies, non-food items, and cash gifts to thousands of beneficiaries.

The distribution, held at the Madinatu IDP camp, served to consolidate Zulum’s resettlement gains. Over the past seven years, Borno State Government has successfully resettled more than 2 million IDPs in their ancestral communities in a dignified and voluntary manner.

“It gladdens my heart today, the 12th of June, 2026, to celebrate June 12th, Democracy Day, here in Madinatu Camp, the only formal camp that is standing inside Maiduguri Metropolitan Council, today, to the glory of God and the benefit of mankind, for the distribution of food and non-food items. Inshallah, this camp will be closed this year. This will be our last distribution exercise in this camp, or the second to the last,” Zulum said.

However, Governor Zulum used the occasion to announce a timeline for the camp’s closure. The governor ordered that Madinatu camp be shut down within one month, vowing to similarly close most IDP camps across various Local Government Areas in the coming phase of his administration’s resettlement strategy.

“Democracy must translate into restoring the dignity of our people,” Zulum told the IDPs. “Living in camps is not a permanent solution. Our goal remains to return every displaced person to their ancestral homes with security and means of livelihood.”

In addition to the food items, Zulum approved N50,000 each for the 2,500 beneficiaries present at the event.

“Each of the 500 beneficiaries mentioned will receive a 25kg bag of rice and a 25kg bag of sorghum. Women will receive wrappers. I also promise to provide 50,000 naira to each beneficiary. This amount can be credited into their own individual accounts, inshallah,” Zulum said.

The exercise was attended by the APC’s State Deputy Chairman, Garba Mulima, APC State Vice Chairman (Central) Abdur Rahman Abdulkarim, Acting Chief of Staff, Dr Babagana Mallumbe, Member representing Jere at the State Assembly, Abba Kyari Kolo, commissioners and commissioner designates and several other senior government officials.

Democracy Day: Zulum gives 2 MRAPs, other logistics to Army, celebrates with IDPs

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Gov. Yusuf Commends DSS Over Arrest of Suspected Gun Courier in Kano

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Gov. Yusuf Commends DSS Over Arrest of Suspected Gun Courier in Kano

By: Michael Mike

Kano State Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, has commended the Department of State Services (DSS) for the arrest of a suspected gun courier intercepted while allegedly transporting weapons believed to be destined for criminal elements in Katsina State.

The commendation was contained in a statement issued by the Governor’s spokesperson, Sunusi Bature Dawakin Tofa, on Thursday, June 12, 2026.

Governor Yusuf described the operation as a major breakthrough in the ongoing fight against banditry, terrorism and other violent crimes threatening communities across Northern Nigeria.

According to information provided by the DSS, the suspect, identified as Muhammad Abubakar, 30, was apprehended in Gezawa Local Government Area of Kano State while allegedly transporting four rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) tubes, three AK-47 rifles and two empty magazines to Funtua in Katsina State.

Preliminary investigations reportedly revealed that the suspect collected the weapons from an individual identified as Bello in the Maigatari border area of Jigawa State and was expected to receive N450,000 upon successful delivery of the arms.

Governor Yusuf praised the professionalism, vigilance and intelligence-driven approach of DSS operatives, noting that the timely interception prevented the weapons from falling into the hands of bandits and other criminal groups.

He said the operation underscored the critical role of intelligence gathering and effective collaboration among security agencies in tackling emerging security threats across the country.

The governor reaffirmed the commitment of the Kano State Government to supporting security agencies through sustained cooperation, logistics assistance and policies aimed at strengthening public safety throughout the state.

He also urged residents to remain vigilant and continue providing credible information to security agencies to aid efforts to combat crime and maintain peace.

Governor Yusuf expressed confidence that ongoing investigations would lead to the arrest and prosecution of all individuals connected to the alleged arms trafficking network.

The statement was signed by Sunusi Bature Dawakin Tofa, Director General, Media and Publicity, Government House, Kano.

Gov. Yusuf Commends DSS Over Arrest of Suspected Gun Courier in Kano

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