The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps in Jigawa State has confirmed that two farmers were killed and Yelwan Musari village in Guri Local Government Area was burnt following an attack by suspected herders.
The Public Relations Officer of the command, SP Badaruddeen, told Tribune Online that the trouble started after herders allegedly encroached on farmlands and destroyed crops.
He said villagers who went to inspect the damage on Sunday morning were ambushed by the herders who had hidden in the area.
“The herders suddenly opened fire with bows and arrows, killing one Magaji Dan’aya on the spot and injuring his younger brother,” he said.
According to him, the villagers later regrouped and attempted to confront the attackers which led to another round of violence.
“The herders also reinforced and moved their cattle several kilometres away before launching another attack. They killed another farmer and forced the villagers to retreat,” he said.
He explained that the fleeing farmers abandoned one of the bodies in the bush, while the attackers pursued them back to the community. He added that the herders surrounded Yelwan Musari and set it on fire.
Badaruddeen said a joint team from Operation Salama, made up of police and military personnel, arrived in the heat of the crisis. However, the second corpse remained in the bush until NSCDC operatives later recovered it after assessing the risk of the attackers still hiding around.
“As I speak, the body is in the house of the village head awaiting burial. Our personnel are on ground monitoring the situation. Many villagers have already fled in fear of a fresh attack,” he said. He noted that the chairman of Guri LGA and security agencies were meeting with both sides.
Residents told Tribune Online that the attack, which started late Saturday and continued into Sunday morning, worsened months of tension between farmers and herders. One of them, Murtala Imamu, said the community had remained uneasy after herders reportedly stopped attending local markets.
He said the armed herders invaded the village and set houses and rice-milling centres ablaze. Imamu linked the renewed hostility to the killing of a farmer, Ya’u Namara, last year, which was blamed on herders.
Another resident, Ado Musa, confirmed the account and added that the attackers blocked the Guri–Hadejia highway, making it impossible for injured villagers to reach hospitals in Hadejia.
“Police and soldiers arrived late. They could not stop the escalation because both sides had been clashing since the afternoon,” he said.
It was not yet clear if the herders suffered any casualties as calls to Adamu Ori, a leader among them, went unanswered.
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Lawan Shi’isu Adam, said he was not yet aware of the incident. “I’m currently in Abuja on official assignment. I will find out,” he said.
The attack came only days after another confrontation in Zarga village, Taura LGA, where twelve farmers sustained injuries.
Guri and surrounding communities in the Jigawa North-East Senatorial District are located in areas with vast farmlands and grazing routes. This geography has often triggered clashes between farmers and herders as both groups struggle for space and survival.
