.IDPs in Taraba seek humanitarian supplies

AT least 34 persons were reportedly killed on Wednesday in a series of coordinated attacks by suspected Lakurawa militants across communities in Arewa Local Government Area of Kebbi State.
 
And in a related development, the Displaced Persons (IDPs) from Chanchanji Ward in Takum Local Council of Taraba State, yesterday, appealed to government at all levels and humanitarian organisations for urgent assistance following renewed attacks on their communities.
 It was gathered that the Kebbi attacks, which lasted from morning through the afternoon, targeted many villages, leaving families devastated and forcing residents to flee for safety.
  
Security analyst, Bakastine, described the attacks as “one of the deadliest single-day incidents in recent months in the area”.
  He said: “The attackers moved systematically from village to village, targeting civilians with brutal efficiency.”
   
According to him, the hardest-hit community was Mamunu, where 16 people lost their lives.
  Five youths were killed in Awashaka, while three residents were killed in Masama, he added, noting that two persons each were killed in Gorin Dena, Kamzo, Dan Mai Rago, Tungar Bature and Tungar Tsoho communities.
 
By nightfall, residents across the wider Kangiwa axis were reportedly gripped by fear amid concerns of further attacks.
  In Taraba, the displaced residents, who fled their homes amid ongoing violence, said they were in critical need of food, temporary shelter and medical supplies.
  
Their appeal came barely a week after Catholic priests in southern Taraba staged a peaceful protest over the continued killings and displacement of Christian farmers in the area.
  Speaking on behalf of the IDPs, community leader, Stephen Kajo, described the persistent attacks as devastating, noting that many residents had been left traumatised and economically stranded.
  
“Our communities have been attacked repeatedly since September. Many lives have been lost. Houses were burnt and our farms destroyed. Our people had no option but to run for safety,” he said.
   Kajo called on the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the North East Development Commission (NEDC) and the Taraba State Emergency Management Agency (TSEMA) to urgently provide food items, temporary shelter materials, medical supplies and other relief materials.

  “We ran with nothing. We depend on goodwill to eat. Life here is very difficult,” he added.
   The displaced persons also urged the state and federal governments to strengthen security operations in the area to halt further killings and enable their safe return to their ancestral homes.