By Sam Tyav, Makurdi
Barely 72 hours after the Benue State Government donated farm inputs to residents of a community in Guma Local Government Area (LGA), armed men suspected to be Fulani herders on Sunday shot two residents of Yelwata settlement.
Yelwata settlement was the scene of fatal attacks by armed herders June last year where over 200 residents were mercilessly massacred and many survivors displaced.
An opinion and community leader, who spoke on anonymous condition, told People&Politics that the incident occurred on Sunday when the armed herders were openly grazing towards Yelwata settlement and soldiers moved in to arrest them.
The source disclosed that when the herders got to know that the soldiers came to apprehend them, they fled, prompting the soldiers to scare them further by firing warning shots into the air.
Speaking further, the source disclosed that the herders allegedly opened fire while retreating and in the process shot two persons in the main Yelwata community.
He explained that “a woman was shot in the hand, while the second one was shot in her leg.”
The community leader revealed also that officials of the Benue State Emergency Management Agency (BSEMA) conveyed the affected victims to Makurdi, the State capital, for medical attention.
They were still alive,as of press time, it was learnt.
However residents of the settlement have started living in fears as some have expressed fears and doubts as to wether the armed herders would allow them to access their farms and make use of the improved inputs provided.
*PHOTO CAPTION: Gov. Alia.
