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Amid frantic efforts to restore peace in Taraba, suspected herdsmen again, yesterday, invaded Dinyina village in Takum Council of the state, killing five.
According to local sources, the attackers stormed the sleepy settlement in the wee hours brandishing dangerous weapons. The situation led to residents fleeing to nearby council areas for refuge.
An eyewitness said they were still in bed when the assailants struck, noting: “ I believe the casualties would be more than five with a lot of people, especially women and children, missing.”
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The council chairman, Shiban Tikari, while confirming the incident, stated: “I was informed of the bad news and learnt that about five persons were killed by the attackers whom I was told are Fulani herdsmen.”
He continued: “It is sad that the council has become target of the herdsmen. There is therefore the need for the federal authorities to assist the state government in putting an end to the incessant attacks and killings.”
The chairman regretted the mayhem amid the avowed efforts by the leadership of the council and security agencies to check the menace.
He said: “We are also calling on the Federal Government to collaborate with the current administration in the state to end these killings.”
Contacted, the public relations officer for the state police command (PPRO), David Misel, said the force received an “ information from that axis concerning the attack “ but could not immediately confirm the casualty figure, adding that security had been beefed up in the areas and manhunt for the perpetrators had begun.
The latest attack comes as a shock to the residents bearing in mind that the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, and the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Yusuf Buratai, were in the state recently where they sued for peace and vowed to urgently bring the bloodletting to an end.
