11/06/2020 Nigeria (International Christian Concern) – According to Luka Binniyat, spokesman of the Southern Kaduna People’s Union, there are more than 100 predominately Christian villages in Southern Kaduna that have been occupied by Fulani. This means that the residents of more than 100 communities have been forced into displacement by violence and fear. This is more than 50,000 people according to binniyat. These people have had to flee to the homes of relatives or friends or to Internally Displaced Person’s camps.
In his press release, Binniyat then goes on to say that more Christians were killed in October as they attempted to return to their village. He names Kaduna Garba as a man killed in a recent incident and Francis Bala, as someone who was severely injured in the attack. However, another group, The Southern Kaduna Peace Practitioners (SOKAPEP) forum has refuted this claim and says that Binniyat is spreading fake claims of these attacks. In their statement, they said, “We hasten to state that the claims made by Binniyat, the National PRO of Southern Kaduna Peoples Union (SOKAPU), were deliberately concocted, to achieve a premeditated agenda of hate, incitement and confusion.” The group followed by saying that all of Binniyat’s number were inflated at best or downright lies at worst.
These kinds of disagreements over attacks and incidents have led to the confusion and furthered the problems that have plagued the Middle Belt Crisis. Without clear and true statements on attacks, or a group who can be trusted to report on this issue. Kaduna State has been one of the most volatile regions in Nigeria. We hope that SOKAPEP’s report about it being stabilized is true, but ICC will continue to monitor and report on the situation there and throughout the rest of the Middle Belt.
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