Atleast 42 killed in weekend attacks in Benue State, Nigeria

At least 42 people were killed in a wave of weekend attacks by suspected herders in Gwer West district of Benue state in central Nigeria, a local official said on Tuesday.

Victor Omnin, chairman of the Gwer West local government, said 32 bodies were recovered after gunmen attacked the Ahume and Aondona villages on Sunday. Ten more people were killed in a separate assault on the villages of Tyolaha and Tse-Ubiam on Saturday.

"It's a pathetic situation. As we speak, we are still recovering corpses," Omnin told journalists.

Benue lies in Nigeria’s Middle Belt, a region where the predominantly Muslim North meets the largely Christian South. The area has long been affected by violence linked to disputes over land between herders and farmers. These clashes are often made worse by ethnic and religious tensions.

The office of Benue Governor Hyacinth Iormem Alia said a Catholic priest was also shot by the attackers and is in critical but stable condition.