A senior military officer has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the leadership of the National Assembly of Nigeria to urgently intervene in the worsening security situation affecting Tiv communities in southern Taraba and parts of Benue State.
The appeal follows a fresh wave of attacks that has left several communities devastated, with residents reporting widespread destruction of homes, farmlands, and harvested crops.
The officer, who hails from Mbajir in the Shitile area, said his village and neighbouring communities across three local government areas in southern Taraba, as well as Katsina-Ala Local Government Area of Benue State, have been under sustained assault over the past two weeks.
According to him, the coordinated attacks forced residents to flee their homes due to the absence of adequate means of self-defence against heavily armed assailants.
Findings by The Guardian on Wednesday night revealed that the situation turned tragic when two of his stepbrothers, who had returned to assess their ancestral home, were ambushed and killed by the attackers.
Since the people were aware of the invasion and had to flee their homes due to lack of any form of self-defence, only houses, farms and harvested crops were destroyed. It is now more disturbing that two of my stepbrothers decided to return to see their homeland and were unfortunately ambushed and killed by the marauders,” he said.
While urging swift and decisive action by authorities, the officer also called for prayers to restore peace in the affected communities, noting that residents are currently living in fear following the destruction of property and loss of lives.
“Please, let us pray for peace in Tiv land; otherwise, we are witnessing a gradual extermination,” he added.
He warned that failure to act promptly could further worsen the humanitarian situation, as recurring attacks continue to displace communities and disrupt livelihoods in the region.
