At least 13 people were killed and several others wounded when armed herdsmen attacked several communities in Eha-Amufu, Isi-Uzo local government area of Enugu State. Sources within the community said the attack which started Saturday morning lasted till Tuesday. There have been recurring attacks by herders in the communities as earlier reports said the armed herdsmen had sacked over 14 local villages in Agu-Amede and Mgbuji communities since the second quarter of 2021.
It had been reported that the invading herders also sacked villages and burnt houses. Many residents reported seeing armed herders with AK45 weapons attacking villagers as they flee their homes.
Photos and videos of the attack, seen by NOHR on Monday and Wednesday showed many residents fleeing the community. One of the videos showed the victims of the attack with multiple machete cuts on their heads and bodies.
The spokesman for Mgbuji, one of the affected communities Chijioke Ogbodo, told newsmen that the attack on the community is an act of war. He decried the nonavailability of security agents to stop the armed herders despite being alerted by the community during the attack.
“Since the (herdsmen) started attacking our community, neither the police nor the military has arrested any of the terrorists. We received information on the attack this morning and alerted all the security agencies. “We have notified all the security agencies but as of noon, we are yet to see any single soldier or police. Our communities are being razed down and after the attack, the government will deploy soldiers dominated by Northerners to shield the jihadists.”
“If the Nigerian police and other security agencies, especially the military cannot protect the people of the South East, then why are they after the Eastern Security Network that helped communities farmed this season? Now we can’t harvest our crops because so many of the ESN members have been killed.” He said.
Meanwhile, the Enugu state government said it has donated the sum of N10 million for the immediate needs of the victims in the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camp and further committed to paying all the medical bills of those receiving treatments in the hospital.
In a statement by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Simon Uchenna Ortuanya, on Tuesday, the State Government called on heads of Security Agencies to rise to the challenge and deploy more personnel to the affected communities to provide adequate security for life and property.