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A joint operation involving a state-backed Nigerian militia, local vigilantes, and a contingent from Benin has left scores of ethnic Fulani herders dead in raids near the border with Niger state, according to local sources who spoke with AFP.
The violence erupted after members of the Fulani community were accused of serving as informants for Ansaru, a jihadist group linked to al-Qaeda.
The operation targeted settlements around Kabe in the Borgu area, where vigilantes from Nigeria’s Bussa district, alongside fighters from Benin, carried out the assault.
Security personnel went from house to house in Fulani herding settlements on Thursday, arresting young men suspected of collaboration with Ansaru. Those who tried to flee or resist were shot, sources said.
A community leader from the neighbouring village of Konkoso, Ahmad Ali, told AFP that 41 people were killed.
“Security personnel killed 41 suspected Ansaru informants in the raids in which many others were arrested,” Ali said.
He added that the operation was a joint effort: “It was a joint operation between community vigilantes and those from neighbouring Benin, with the help of Nigerian soldiers.”
A Nigerian military spokesman declined to comment on the incident, stating that he needed to gather more information.
A Beninese military spokesman did not answer AFP calls seeking comment, leaving questions about that country’s official involvement unanswered.
A humanitarian worker delivering aid to people displaced by the violence put the death toll at 38 and blamed “vigilantes from Nigeria and Benin.”
Niger state, a gold-mining and agricultural region, has been plagued for years by armed gangs known locally as “bandits” who specialise in cattle rustling and kidnapping for ransom. In recent times, jihadist groups from the northeast have also established a presence there.
Occasional cooperation between bandits and jihadists has become a growing concern for security analysts.
A resident of Kabe who gave his name only as Abubakar described the raid as a “pre-emptive” action.
He said Fulani herders had threatened to disrupt farming activities during the coming rainy season, warning that they would attack farmers working in their fields.
Those threats followed the killing of two Fulani men in the nearby community of Sabalunna, who had also been accused of being Ansaru informants.
In response, Ansaru militants attacked and burned down Sabalunna, vowing “they would never condone the killing of their people,” Abubakar said.
“The Fulani herders openly threatened to disrupt farming this rainy season as they would be attacking farmers while working on their farms in the bush,” Abubakar told AFP.
“This prompted the pre-emptive raid.”
Following the attacks, the herding settlements have been abandoned, with residents fleeing alongside their cattle, sources said.
