Fulani herdsmen this week killed at least nine Christians in Plateau state, Nigeria, following the slaughter of 27 Christians others days earlier. The attacks occurred in Bokkos County within predominantly Christian communities such as Hokk, Pangkap, Fokoldep, Kopmur, Margif, Horop, Mbor, Mushere, and Kwahas, residents said.
Local resident Emmanuel Auta stated, “Nine Christians were killed in the Mushere area of Bokkos County on Sunday and Monday (June 1-2),” and Lilian Madaki added, “The herdsmen had been attacking Bokkos County villages days before. For six days, Fulanis have continued to attack our communities which are predominantly Christian villages.”
Resident Dorcas Ishaya detailed that herdsmen attacked Mbor, Margif, and Mijing on May 27, “all Christian villages, and set fire on houses and killed many Christians. The attacks occurred at about 11 p.m.” On late Monday night (June 2), these herdsmen reportedly invaded the Christian villages of Hokk, Pangkap, and Fokoldep, continuing to shoot on Tuesday (June 3).
“Christians are currently under intense and sustained gunfire from Fulani terrorist elements in Hokk, Pangkap, and Fokoldep Christian communities in Bokkos Local Government Area,” Resident Kefas said.
Residents also reported the kidnapping and killing of Rev. Mimang Lekyil, 70, a pastor of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN) in the Kwahas area of Mushere, who was taken and killed on May 27.
Christian journalist Masara Kim noted that 11 other Christians were killed in the area on May 25. Area resident Nanlop Joy stated that herdsmen killed eight Christians in Kopmur village and an additional seven in the Mbor community.
Nigeria remains one of the most dangerous countries for Christians, as ranked on Open Doors’ 2025 World Watch List, where 69% of the 4,476 Christians killed worldwide for their faith in the reporting period—about 3,100—were in Nigeria. “The measure of anti-Christian violence in the country is already at the maximum possible under World Watch List methodology,” the report stated.
In Nigeria’s North-Central zone, where Christians are more prevalent than in the North-East and North-West, the Islamic extremist Fulani militia often attack farming communities, killing many hundreds, primarily Christians.
The report also detailed the activity of jihadist groups such as Boko Haram and ISWAP in the northern states, where government control is weak, and communities face raids, sexual violence, roadblock killings, and ransom abductions, which have increased significantly.
The violence has extended to the southern states, with a new jihadist terror group, Lakurawa, emerging in the northwest, armed with advanced weaponry and a radical Islamist agenda. The WWL noted that Lakurawa is affiliated with the expansionist Al-Qaeda insurgency Jama’a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM) originating from Mali.
