…The incident comes barely a week after suspected herders attacked the same area and killed five farmers.
BENUE, NIGERIA- The iNews Times | Suspected armed herders have allegedly killed two security operatives in Udeku community, Turan District of Kwande Local Government Area, Benue State.
The attack, which occurred on Saturday, triggered the displacement of many residents, according to a community leader, Lawrence Akerigba, who said economic and social activities in the area have been completely disrupted.
The slain officers were part of a security team deployed to restore calm following repeated attacks attributed to suspected herders in the local government.
An anonymous source said the victims, a soldier and an officer of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps had left their duty post on a motorcycle to refill their cooking gas at Aga Market.
“On their return, they reportedly ran into a roadblock mounted by Fulani militants, who caught them off guard, opened fire, and killed them on the spot,” the source said.
Local youths were said to have mobilised, searched the surrounding forest, recovered the burnt bodies of the officers, and conveyed them to the mortuary at Jato Aka.
The incident comes barely a week after suspected herders attacked the same area and killed five farmers.
A senior military officer attached to Operation Whirl-Stroke confirmed the development, noting that one of the victims was a soldier and an aircraftman.
The state Police Public Relations Officer, Udeme Edet, clarified that no police officer was killed in the attack, adding that the casualty involved an officer from a sister security agency.
Confirming the incident, the NSCDC spokesperson, Michael Ejelikwu, said that at about 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 10, 2026, suspected Fulani militias attacked three security personnel attached to Operation Whirl-Stroke at Udedeku, Maav-ya, Mbakyor council ward of Kwande Local Government Area, killing two of them.
Ejelikwu identified one of the deceased as Chief Corps Assistant Tijani Idris (NSCDC S/No: 76691) of the Kaduna State Command, who was seconded to the joint task force. He added that the corps remains resolute in tackling insecurity despite the loss.
The attack occurred amid renewed violence in Benue State, with reports of increased assaults on farmers and security personnel in recent weeks.
Traditional rulers in Gwer West and Agatu Local Government Areas, HRH Daniel Abomtse and HRH James Ejeh have separately raised concerns over the influx of bandits into the state.
