Wole Ayodele in Jalingo
Eight people were killed and several others injured as Herdsmen attacked Jekunho village in Jalingo local government area of Taraba state on Friday evening.
The attackers, according to residents of the community who narrowly escaped the attack stormed the community in their hundreds at about 5.00pm and started shooting anybody in sight.
Similarly, Rafinkada, Kente and Tor-Musa communities in Wukari local government area came under serious attack and reprisal attacks on Friday as the Tiv/Jukun crisis festers.
Narrating their ordeal to newsmen, a resident of Jekunho community, Paul Douglas said the entire village was razed down and reduced to rubble by the Herdsmen and all the residents had been forced to flee and take refuge at the state capital.
According to Douglas, residents of Kona and Janibanbu villages had also been forced to flee their villages due to threats of attack by the herdsmen thereby leaving the communities desolate.
“These people have been threatening to destroy our villages and kill our people and now they have succeeded. They came in this evening and opened fire killing anyone in sight.
“They were more than a 100 people on motorcycles and they were carrying heavy guns. Our people have fled their homes into other villages and they are threatening to even burn down Janibanibu this night”
He however lamented the failure of security personnel to come to their rescue despite raising an alarm and considering that the community is about a kilometer away from the state capital.
All efforts to reach the Police Public Relations Officer, Taraba State Command, DSP David Misal proved abortive as his line was unreachable.
Meanwhile, security operatives have been deployed to Wukari and other adjoining villages to curtail the spate of attacks which have continued despite efforts to broker peace between the warring groups.
