A night of worship and quiet reflection turned into horror on Palm Sunday when suspected gunmen invaded the Gari Ya Waye area of Angwan Rukuba, Jos North, killing more than 20 residents and injuring several others.
The attack, which occurred around 7:50 p.m. on March 29,
sent families fleeing as gunshots echoed across the community. Security
personnel arrived nearly an hour later to restore order.
Speaking to TheCable, Emmanuel Topaz Daniel, a youth leader
in the community, said the shooting began while he was on the main road to buy
soap.
“We thought maybe it was drug law enforcement personnel,” he
said, noting that such operations were not unusual. “But the shooting didn’t
sound normal. When we saw them coming, it was some young boys, maybe eight.
When we tried to communicate with them, the shooting got worse.”
He said the attackers moved from house to house, forcing
doors open and shooting residents at close range.
“Any door they saw, they would bang it and shoot,” he said.
“They walked freely until they passed into the next community or the bush.”
By Sunday night, 14 bodies had been recovered. Another 11 were taken to the mortuary immediately after the attack. By Monday morning, the death toll had risen to 28 after some of the injured died in the hospital.
Solomon Dalyop Mwantiri, national president of the Berom
Youth Moulders Association, said the attack aligned with intelligence received
weeks earlier about the movement of terrorist cells into Plateau and other
Middle Belt states.
“Since three weeks ago, we got intel that terrorist gangs
have moved into Plateau,” Mwantiri told TheCable. “They built camps ready for
attack. The foot soldiers of Bello Turji and others from Nasarawa and Southern
Kaduna have moved into the state.”
He said the group had expected security agencies to act on
the intelligence before the situation escalated.
The Plateau state government imposed a 48‑hour
curfew on Jos North, effective from midnight March 29 to April 1, to prevent
further breakdown of law and order.
Caleb Mutfwang, the state governor, visited the community on
Monday morning, assuring residents that the state would not allow a mass
burial.
“There will be no mass burial,” he said. “We will liaise
with the families and give these people a decent burial. Those in the hospital,
we will take care of their bills till they get well.”
He confirmed that one suspect who had issued threats on
social media was already in custody, with others being tracked.
“The enemy wanted to disrupt the peace of the land,” the
governor said. “We will not allow them. Let’s be eternally vigilant.”
Residents say the attack struck at the heart of a community
that had worked to maintain peace despite tensions in surrounding areas.
“We’ve embraced peace. We welcome anybody within the
community,” Daniel said. “But with what happened, we are shocked. The least
place I expected such a thing to happen is Angwan Rukuba.”
As families prepare for burials and the injured continue to
receive treatment, the community remains tense, waiting for answers and hoping
the government’s promises translate into action.
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com