Survivors of the recent deadly attacks in Yelwata, Guma Local Government Area of Benue State, have broken their silence, sharing harrowing accounts of how suspected herdsmen stormed their community, killing relatives and setting homes ablaze.
In a video interview with News Central TV, one of the survivors, Michael Ajah, gave a tearful account of how he lost at least 20 members of his family in the massacre.
“My people, my family members, they died in this house—11. Some died in the other store, eight, and some died here. My whole family members that died yesterday, the day before yesterday, on that very day, there were 20,” he said.
“That is my own family members. I’m not talking about any other thing. That is my own family members,” Ajah added, struggling to hold back emotion.
He further explained how the attackers torched his belongings and properties.
“This is my store. Those shops are my stores. Those places are burnt. My house is up there—that place also is burnt,” he said.
“And the store where I pack my goods, I store my goods everywhere. That’s burnt. They burnt my clothes. They burnt everything. They burnt our food. All my family members.
“What we came out with is our clothes, what we wear. And I, standing here, this is what I came out with. And this is the only thing that I have. There is nothing with me,” he said, holding the shirt he wore during the attack.
Ajah also recounted how the assailants struck during a late-night rainstorm.
“On that very day, rain started in the evening. So we entered. I slept there. So, I was sleeping. Around 10:20, we heard gunshots at the back there. So, before we could notice that something has happened, Fulani men, they entered this place.”
He insisted he could identify the attackers, saying he heard them speak.
“They were speaking and I was inside the room and I heard them clearly, not somebody told me. I was inside the room there and they surrounded that room. I escaped narrowly. My brother was burnt in this house. Some escaped. My dad was burnt in this house,” he said.
In a separate interview, another resident, Bature Bartholomew, revealed he lost his younger brother, sister-in-law, and mother—burnt alive during the raid.
“I can’t say precisely because it’s over millions of naira. I store grains like guinea corn, maize, soya beans, rice,” he said of the property he lost.
“My younger brother stays here. He’s no longer alive, he was burnt inside this house. He was burnt in this house—yes, him, his wife, mother and many others were burnt in this house.”
This newspaper had earlier reported that no fewer than 45 people were killed in the attack, which began Friday night and extended into the early hours of Saturday.
In response to the tragedy, President Bola Tinubu has postponed his scheduled visit to Kaduna and will now travel to Benue State on Wednesday, as part of efforts to address the ongoing violence and seek lasting peace in the region.