At least 20 people have been killed in Kaduna since June 8, prompting renewed scrutiny in Washington and London over Nigeria’s failure to contain militia violence.
By Mike Odeh James and Izhi Bitrus Adamu
(Kaduna) United States Congressman declared Fulani militants Nigeria’s deadliest persecutors of Christians this week as Fulani Ethnic Militia (FEM) as the toll of fatalities in Kaduna State alone reached 20 since June 8.
“As I have been saying since I started investigating the genocide against Christians in Nigeria, Fulani militants are by far the largest perpetrators of violence against Christians in Nigeria,” Congressman Riley Moore of West Virginia posted Wednesday on X.
His words landed as bodies were still being counted in the county of Birnin Gwari, where Fulani terrorists have killed at least 20 residents and abducted more than 20 others between June 8 and July 7 despite a state amnesty meant to end the carnage.
The violence, spanning June 8 to July 7, unfolded despite the Kaduna State Government’s peace efforts — and as lawmakers in Washington and London warn that Fulani militancy has become the gravest threat to Nigeria’s unity.
The stakes reach far beyond Kaduna. Nigeria Africa’s largest democracy – projected to become the world’s fourth-most populous country – was redesignated a Country of Particular Concern by President Donald Trump in October, whose administration has ordered strikes on Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP). Moore calls Nigeria a venue of Christian genocide.
“The Trump Administration has made historic progress against Boko Haram and ISWAP, but we must also stop the killing in the Middle Belt at the hands of the Fulani if we want to ensure our brothers and sisters in Christ are safe to live and worship without being murdered,” Moore wrote.
The numbers back him. FEM accounts for 44 percent of civilian killings in Nigeria, against 12 percent by Boko Haram and ISWAP combined, according to observatory data reported this week by the Daily Caller yet counterterrorism operations remain focused on the jihadist groups.
Britain is asking questions, too. Crossbench peer Lord Alton of Liverpool tabled written question HL909 on June 15, citing the TruthNigeria investigation “Nigeria’s Hidden Gulag: Inside the Rijana Camps” and demanding to know what representations London will make to Abuja to protect survivors of hidden hostage camps in northwestern Nigeria.
Birnin Gwari Killing Zone
- “On July 1, Fulani Terrorists stormed Unguwar Gere at 6:30 p.m., seizing six Almajiri pupils (male orphans) returning from a farm. Soldiers from Supa Camp in Kuyello engaged the attackers and forced a retreat, but the children were taken,” Yusuf Tabbani, a farmer and resident of Kuyello, told TruthNigeria.
- “On July 2, gunmen killed a traveler, Ya’u Gayam, on the Kaduna–Birnin Gwari Road just 48 hours after Governor Uba Sani declared the route safe,” Tabbani said.
- The deadliest strike came July 4 in Kakangi village, where Fulani Terrorists opened fire on farmers at 3 p.m., killing at least nine.
- “One bandit fled and returned with a heavily armed gang,” Ibrahim Garba, a Kakangi resident, told TruthNigeria.
- On June 24, two police officers died battling roughly 15 armed terrorists near Unguwan Sa’idu. Nine hostages were rescued.
- Six farmers were killed June 22 at the Kujijiro farmlands in Kuyello District. On the highway, gunmen killed commercial driver Ibrahim Adamu, grandson of a district head, and abducted five passengers.
Kajuru Family Seized
Fulani Terrorists kidnapped three residents and shot one man in Ungwan Busa, Maro ward, Kajuru County, on July 7.
The kidnapped victims – apparently members of one family – are Grace Patrick, 38, Hassanna Patrick, 28, and two-year-old Salina Patrick, according to Isaiah Adamu, a community leader from Maro who spoke to TruthNigeria.
Maichibi Danfwari, 35, was shot during the attack and is receiving treatment.
The raid caps a month of bloodshed in Kajuru County. On June 26, attackers stormed the Adara communities of Umaso and Unguwa-Ku in Kufana Ward, killing two residents, including 23-year-old Luka Aminizeh Alibaba — wounding four and abducting seven.
On June 18, Fulani Terrorists raided Ungwan Makama Rubu, shooting 56-year-old farmer Maryamu Yohanna and abducting three women. Three residents of Kutura Station were kidnapped June 14, a day after five farmers were seized on their land. Nine people were kidnapped and two pastors wounded in the June 8 attack on Kampani Iburu.
Amnesty in Tatters
The killings expose a state amnesty for criminal gangs arranged by Kaduna Gov. Uba Sani Nov. 29, 2024 that is not holding. Armed factions in the forests have refused to lay down arms, invading farmlands, intimidating farmers, and seizing motorcycles and phones from residents, the Birnin Gwari Emirate Progressives Union (BEPU) warned in June.
Residents of Kuyello, Kutemeshi, Tabbanni, Dogon Dawa and Kazage say herders’ cattle have razed thousands of hectares of farmland at the height of planting season, while repeated killings on farm routes have left many too afraid to tend their crops.
“The victims were mercilessly attacked and killed while carrying out their lawful farming activities. This tragic incident has once again thrown the entire Birnin Gwari community into grief and fear,” Dr. Isah Muhammad, Chairman of BEPU, said of the Kujijiro killings.
“We are deeply worried that if urgent and decisive action is not taken to stop these attacks, many farmers may become afraid to return to their farms this season,” Muhammad warned.
For advocates in Washington and Westminster, Kaduna’s July toll is the latest evidence that Fulani militancy now poses the gravest threat to Nigeria’s unity as a multi-religious state, with legislation pending in the U.S. Congress to determine whether FEM qualifies for designation as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
Mike Odeh James is an award winning conflict reporter; Izhi Bitrus Adamu is a conflict reporter. They write for TruthNigeria.
