Nigeria (International Christian Concern) The National Leadership of Irigwe Youth Movement (IYM) has condemned a recent attack on the Irigwe people. The attack occurred during the Irigwe peoples’ annual ritual festival Zerreci, the festival that will usher them into the rainy farming season.
They were attacked by Fulani militants normally referred by government authorities as “unknown gunmen” on April 2, 2022, at about 11 pm at the ritual ground Chando Zerreci in Bassa Local Government of Plateau State.
Ten people were killed and nineteen people suffered gunshot wounds but survived. Some of the wounded are undergoing medical treatment at Enos Hospital Miango while others are in Jos.
The National President of the IYM, Ezekiel Bini, called for quick action by the Nigerian authorities to ensure the arrest of those responsible for the attack who, Bini said, aimed to wipe out the Rigwe people at all costs.
Last month, over ten people were killed in Rigwe villages in Bassa local government are. Houses and food crops were destroyed by the militants.
Nigerian authorities at the federal and state levels failed to protect the lives and properties of the Rigwe people, instead leaving to the mercy of the gunmen. The military has refused to take action despite early warning signs brought to its attention.
Ezekiel Bini pleaded with the international community to come to the aid of the Rigwe people and to support them with humanitarian aid. He called on President Biden to come to the aid of Christians in Nigeria suffering from persecution and other human rights violations including. He asked that the American government investigate Nigerian issues like it is pursuing the unfolding crisis in Ukraine.
This article originally appeared here.