Benue Killings: Insiders Aiding Killers — CDS Musa

The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, has proposed the deployment and training of trusted youth volunteers across Benue State to serve as community-based vigilantes under military supervision, mirroring a similar initiative implemented in Borno State.

Speaking at a meeting with traditional rulers in Makurdi, the Benue State capital, on Tuesday, General Musa emphasized the urgent need for local cooperation in tackling the unrelenting violence in the state. He charged the traditional leaders to take responsibility by monitoring criminal elements within their domains.

“We are tired of innocent souls being killed, and we’re here to ensure that we address such. I’ll be going to see my commanders and we have to change our strategy,” Musa declared.

“We’re going to look inward and see how we can address it. But as we mentioned, we cannot do it alone without the community, without the state. We need everybody to be part of it.”

He also expressed concern about internal collaborators who may be aiding the attackers, noting that the nature of some attacks suggests insider involvement.

“Even before now, we used to have, even within us, people that compromise and give information. Because going around, you see the way some of the burnings were made they were targeted which means there were insiders,” the CDS explained.

“I’ve discussed with the communities, the traditional rulers, with the clergy for us to work united.”

Meanwhile, Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule paid a condolence visit to his Benue counterpart, Governor Hyacinth Alia, following the recent massacre in Yelewata. Governor Sule urged both states to cooperate to stem the tide of killings and announced a donation of ₦150 million to support the internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Benue.

Benue, a major food-producing state in Nigeria’s North-Central region, has endured repeated attacks by suspected herders, leading to widespread loss of lives and displacement. Experts trace the violence to farmer-herder conflicts, land disputes, and inter-communal tensions.

Over the last two months, more than 160 people have been killed in various coordinated attacks. The latest occurred last Friday in Yelewata, Guma Local Government Area, where at least 59 residents were slaughtered in an overnight raid, leaving over 3,000 displaced.

The escalating violence has drawn both national and international condemnation. Pope Leo XIV recently described the killings as a “terrible massacre” and called for immediate intervention.

On Sunday, President Bola Tinubu tasked Governor Alia with initiating reconciliation dialogues among affected parties to halt the bloodshed and promote peaceful coexistence among farmers, herders, and local communities. He also instructed all service chiefs, including CDS Musa, to immediately bring an end to the attacks.

Since arriving in Benue on Monday, General Musa and the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, have visited several affected communities. They have directed field commanders, including those from neighboring Nasarawa State, to revise their operational tactics and respond decisively to any act of terrorism.

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