Suspected herdsmen launched a deadly midnight raid on Tse Yange, a Tiv community in Nasarawa State’s Obi LGA, killing the village head and abducting multiple residents on June 16, 2025. Armed assailants stormed the agrarian settlement on motorcycles, unleashing violence that lasted hours. While the exact toll remains unclear, locals reported injuries, mass displacement, and deserted homes. Authorities have yet to release official statements on the attack.
• Targeted Violence: Attackers singled out the village head for execution, a tactic often used to destabilize rural communities.
• Mass Abductions: The raid follows a pattern of kidnappings for ransom in Nigeria’s Middle Belt, where over 1,500 were abducted in 2024 (SBM Intelligence).
• Security Vacuum: No military or police intervention occurred during the hours-long assault, highlighting protection gaps in conflict zones.
This attack underscores Nigeria’s unending farmer-herder crisis, now morphing into outright terrorism. Why does Nasarawa, bordering Benue, face repeated attacks? Security forces’ slow response suggests either complicity or incapacity. With displaced farmers unable to plant crops during the rainy season, food insecurity looms. Meanwhile, the Tinubu administration’s silence echoes its muted Benue response, raising questions about the political will to protect vulnerable communities.
Sources: Daily Post, SBM Intelligence, Local Witnesses
