BENUE STATE GOVERNOR ALIA SAYS KILLERS ARE FOREIGN TERRORISTS, NOT NIGERIANS
Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia has claimed that the rising tide of violence and killings across the state is being carried out by foreign mercenaries, not Nigerian herders or bandits. In a stark warning issued during a Channels Television appearance on Tuesday, Alia said the attackers exhibit characteristics that are clearly non-Nigerian, including their language, appearance, and tactics.
“We know Nigerians by their ethnicities,” Alia said. “These ones don’t bear the Nigerian look. Even the Hausa they speak is different from ours. Intelligence suggests they are Malians and others from outside Nigeria.”
He described the current wave of attacks as the second and more dangerous phase of Benue’s long-standing herder-farmer crisis, noting that traditional Fulani herders in the past did not operate with the same level of violence or sophisticated weaponry.
“This is a new face of terror. They are well-armed, highly coordinated, and strike with military precision. Then they retreat. Where do they go?” Alia queried.
He disclosed that many of the attackers retreat into hideouts in neighbouring states like Taraba and Nasarawa, and even across porous borders into Cameroon. The governor urged the federal government to treat the situation as a national security emergency, noting that Benue is under siege from coordinated terrorist groups.
The remarks come as Nigeria grapples with growing insecurity in its Middle Belt region, where multiple attacks in recent months have claimed scores of lives and displaced thousands of residents in Benue and Plateau States.
