Msurshima Apeh, a female survivor of the Yelwata attack, on Thursday testified before the U.S. Congress, narrating how five of her children were slaughtered during the attack by Fulani terrorists.
Ms Apeh spoke virtually during a U.S. Congress hearing on President Donald Trump’s redesignation of Nigeria as a ‘country of particular concern’ on Thursday.
“When we went to sleep that night around 9:00 p.m., the Fulani terrorists attacked us where we were sleeping,” she said. “At some point in time, they poured petrol on the building and the majority of them were set ablaze.”
Narrating how she escaped the attack that claimed the lives of her five children, Ms Apeh said, “In the course of this action, I saw a tree when I lifted my eyes. I raised my hands on the tree and climbed up where I was able to hide myself.
“My five children that I left below were crying, and in my presence, they were being slaughtered by the terrorists.”
In June, over a hundred people were killed in a coordinated attack on Yelwata, a community in Guma LGA of Benue. A resident of Yelewata town told journalists that more than 70 corpses had already been recovered, adding that the search for missing people was still on.
“The death toll will rise as the search and rescue mission is on. Many were already burnt in stores. I am right here on the ground. More than 85 per cent of the victims were IDPs who ran from Antsa, Dooka, Kadarko, and Giza areas and are taking refuge at various stores in Yelwata Market and residences.
“There is a police station and military checkpoint here in Yelwata town, but they were outnumbered by attackers,” the source said.
Shortly after the attack, the Benue government said 107 Yelwata victims were still receiving treatment at the Benue State Teaching Hospital in Makurdi, though UNICEF put the figure of locals being treated at over 300.
Meanwhile, in September, the State Security Service arraigned nine suspects accused of complicity in the deadly attack in Yelwata and parts of Plateau.
This month, the Nigerian government reiterated its commitment to work closely with the government of the United States and other countries to eliminate terrorism in Nigeria.
