BENUE ATTACKS DISPLACE 6,527, NEMA WARNS OF HUMANITARIAN CRISIS
By IDNN Emergency Affairs Desk
The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has confirmed that 6,527 people have been displaced by the recent mass killings in Benue State, marking one of the worst humanitarian crises in Nigeria’s Middle Belt in recent years.
The agency said the displaced include 82 pregnant women, 252 lactating mothers, and 657 children under 18, all now requiring urgent food, water, medical supplies, and protection.
According to NEMA, many of the survivors are traumatised and currently camped at the Makurdi International Market, where a new Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) shelter has been set up.
“Displacement figures stood at 1,069 households, comprising 6,527 individuals,” NEMA said. “Urgent humanitarian support is being mobilised to alleviate the hardship.”
DEATHS STILL UNCERTAIN, HUMAN NEED ESCALATES
While locals insist that more than 200 people were killed, NEMA said official casualty figures remain “inconsistent due to volatile security conditions and restricted access to affected zones.”
Medical officials said 20 out of 46 injured persons taken to hospitals have died, with emergency blood donations now being called for.
The agency warned that poor sanitation, lack of clean water, and trauma among victims—especially children and nursing mothers—could further worsen the crisis.
RELIEF EFFORTS UNDERWAY
In response, a coordinated relief operation involving SEMA, the UNHCR, Red Cross, and the IOM is being mounted at the Makurdi camp. Officials say efforts are also being made to locate additional survivors and recover bodies still trapped in burnt homes.
“What we are witnessing is a large-scale displacement caused by unprovoked and targeted violence,” an aid worker said at the IDP site.
President Tinubu’s directive to “act decisively” has yet to materialize into a full-scale relief surge, and residents continue to rely on private donors and volunteer groups for food and medication.
