Nigeria’s new theatre of death, Plateau State witnessed a disturbing drama Wednesday as angry youths and protesters in the Jos North Local Government Area dumped more than 20 corpses at the main gate of Plateau State Government House in Little Rayfield following an attack on Yelwan Zangam village in the LGA..
The protest on Wednesday by hundreds of angry youths was in the aftermath of Tuesday’s night attack on Yelwan Zangam, a community inhabited by the Anaguta ethnic group in the outskirt of Jos, the state capital.
There are many versions of the reasons behind the night raid which community leaders said had claimed 37 lives.
Families of some of the victims said the attack was launched by herders.
While police authorities in Plateau State have confirmed the attack, they were yet to give details of the actual number of people killed and the suspect behind the act.
However, the angry youths and women who staged a protest on Wednesday wailed and called for justice as security agents prevented them from accessing Plateau’s seat of government.
The people of Yelwan Zangam had earlier Wednesday moved corpses of the victims to Plateau Hospital to deposit them in the mortuary.
However, some angry youths stormed the hospital, packed the remains into pickup vans and moved them to the State House of Assembly which is less than a kilometre away.
Thereafter, the youths transported some of the corpses to Little Rayfield and lined them up in front of the government house. The victims include men, women and children.
Residents of Yelwan Zangam said the attack on their community was carried out by herdsmen who killed 37 people and set many houses and vehicles ablaze..
However, the Police spokesman for Plateau State Police State Command, ASP Ubah Gabriel, and that of Operation Safe Haven (OPSH), Major Ishaku Gaji, only confirmed the attack but said details of the incident would be communicated later.
As of the time of filing this report, no official figure of casualties was released but Yakubu Bagudu, a resident of Yelwan Zangam and the son of the traditional leader of the village, said they counted 37 corpses.
He said, “Some of the victims were burnt in a house where they were taking cover in the home of the community leader.
“The community leader is alive but my brother was killed in the incident. My house and my car were burnt too. For now, there is an allegation the attack was launched by Fulani herders.”
