No fewer than 13 people were reportedly killed and several traders abducted on Friday when gunmen suspected to be armed herders attacked Anwase Market in Mbaikyor, Kwande Local Government Area of Benue State.
The assailants stormed the busy market, opened fire on civilians, looted goods, abducted market women, and set stalls and shops ablaze before fleeing toward a nearby mountain.
An aide to the Kwande Local Government Chairman, Ibi Andrew, confirmed 13 deaths, according to Channels TV. The council chairman, Vitalis Neji, has moved to the scene with security agencies to restore calm and prevent further violence.
Eyewitnesses recounted that the attackers emerged from a nearby mountain, shooting sporadically as they descended on the market. The gunfire triggered panic, with residents and traders fleeing in different directions before the assailants torched parts of the market and forcibly took several women away.
As of Friday evening, the Benue State Police Command had not issued an official statement on the incident. Attempts to reach the police spokesperson, DSP Udeme Edet, were unsuccessful.
The latest attack came barely two days after a similar assault on Abande community, also in Kwande LGA, on Tuesday afternoon. At least 16 people were killed in that incident when gunmen invaded the local market on market day, shot civilians, looted shops, and set parts of the market on fire.
A community leader and former supervisory councillor in Kwande LGA, Lawrence Akerigba, said the attackers made away with millions of naira belonging to traders before torching the market. He confirmed the death of a mobile police officer believed to be the unit commander on duty, alongside local residents.
Akerigba added that bodies were evacuated to Jato-Aka by Mobile Police Force personnel late Tuesday night, while several residents remained missing and search efforts continued.
He lamented the repeated attacks, noting that many residents have fled their homes, spreading fear across Turan and neighbouring communities.
The continued assaults underscore the deteriorating security situation in Kwande LGA, leaving residents with little sense of safety or assurance of protection despite ongoing security operations in the area.
The incidents have heightened calls for stronger military presence and decisive action to curb banditry and armed herder violence in rural Benue communities.
