ABUJA
At least 18 people were killed in a violent communal clash linked to a land dispute in Nigeria’s north-central Niger state, police said on Friday, as authorities stepped up security to prevent further violence.
The clashes occurred between Monday and Thursday in communities in Rafi Local Government Area, according to the Niger State Police Command.
Police spokesperson Wasiu Abiodun said the violence began after suspected armed men shot dead a resident, Ibrahim Musa, in Godoro village on Monday.
He said the killing triggered a series of reprisal attacks.
“Some local vigilantes, popularly known as Yansakai, in a suspected reprisal attack, blocked the road and killed Bashir Mazi,” Abiodun said in a statement.
According to him, the violence escalated on Wednesday and Thursday when armed attackers stormed the Angwan-Baago community in Katako district.
“The hoodlums attacked the community and set a house ablaze where 15 persons were burnt to death, while another person was killed at a different location,” he said.
Abiodun said police officers, soldiers and other security personnel had been deployed to the affected communities to restore normalcy.
“A reconciliation committee headed by the chairman of Rafi Local Government Area, alongside the district head and other critical stakeholders, has been constituted to address the root causes of the conflict and prevent further breakdown of law and order,” he added.
Authorities said investigations are ongoing to identify and arrest those responsible for the attacks.
Communal violence involving disputes over land ownership, grazing routes and access to natural resources remains a recurring security challenge in parts of Nigeria’s Middle Belt and north-central region.
