09/17/2020 Nigeria (International Christian Concern) – On September 13, suspected Fulani militants carried out an attack on a couple in Plateau state, Nigeria. The attack took place on Sunday along Hukke road in Miango Local Government Area around 6:45 in the evening. The couple who was killed were named Sunday Audu, 45, and his wife, Lami Audu, 32. The couple was headed home from the farm land when the attackers shot them.
An eyewitness to the attack, Daniel Gbere, said that it “took place in less than 200 meter away from [a] security post” but that the security personnel did nothing to stop it. He said that the security officers waited until the attack was completed and the attackers had escaped before they did anything. This is despite the fact that the military checkpoints stationed throughout Nigeria are placed in order to keep peace and stop attacks such as these from taking place.
This is also not the first time that the military and security officials have been accused of standing by as civilians get attacked. There are regular reports of attacks taking place and military officials showing up hours later to secure the area. This includes an attack that took place in June 2018, where an entire village was destroyed less than 150 meters from a military checkpoint. When called the members stationed at the checkpoint said that they could not leave the post despite being able to clearly see the burning house and hear gunfire. It was only hours later that the military sent anyone to help put out the fire.
These kinds of incidents continue to destroy any faith the Nigerian people have in their government and security services. This leads to communities not trusting the military and forces communities to feel as if they must defend themselves. Despite this, Nigerian citizens are not allowed to own guns, making it impossible for them to defend themselves effectively, leading to the thousands of deaths a year at the hands of extremist groups such as Bok Haram or the Fulani militants.
For interviews, please contact Olivia Miller, Communications Coordinator: press@persecution.org.
