Nigeria Christian Community Leader Alleges Land-Grab Agenda Behind Massacres

Christian communities in Nigeria are experiencing repeated attacks and subsequent occupation of their lands by Fulani herdsmen, a pattern described as a coordinated land-grabbing agenda with religious motives. This trend, documented across multiple states, involves the destruction of churches and the displacement of Christian populations, with a perceived lack of adequate security response. The situation has led to calls for urgent government intervention and international support to address the ongoing crisis.

• Fulani herders are allegedly equipped with AK-47s, while Christians face arrest for possessing firearms.
• An attack on Bin Per resulted in the burial of 26 Christians in a mass grave, with attackers estimated at over 500.
• The security situation deteriorated around 2018 with cattle rustling, intensifying after Governor Caleb Muthuang took office in 2023.
• Nearly 30 communities in Mangu LGA have been sacked and occupied by Fulani herdsmen.
• Attacks are characterized by the burning of churches, followed by occupation of villages by Fulani settlers.
• A pattern of attacks on Christian communities and churches, while nearby Muslim settlements remain unharmed, suggests a religious motive.
• The Nigerian Army’s delayed response and confiscation of community-held weapons are viewed as complicity by some residents.
• Similar patterns of massacre, displacement, and occupation by Fulani herdsmen are documented in Benue, Taraba, Oyo, Kaduna, and Adamawa states.
• Data indicates a significant increase in Fulani occupation of lands in southeastern Nigeria, affecting communal lands and religious sites.
• Community leaders and diaspora organizations allege a campaign of forced displacement and demographic engineering, with renaming of ancestral lands.