Nigeria: Killings, land and cattle

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1:09Welcome to the documentary podcast from the BBC World Service with me, Alex Last, here in Nigeria. You see this house? This house. They killed people there. As you can see, this house was born completely. I'm walking along a rutted mud road towards the village of Zike, deep in the rolling hills of the countryside of Plateau State, lining the track of houses with mud walls and metal roofs, and there's some thatched huts too. And beyond, to my left and right, lie the fields where maize and millet are grown. But there's an army presence here. There's a heavily armed pickup outside the village primary school.

1:53on my right. And that's because of what happened here in April 2025. Around 2.12, I said 2 minutes to 12, I heard the first gunshot. I went out barefooted. Then I just heard the team was closed. Joseph Izizino is a university student and a youth leader among the Christian Iriguei ethnic group who live in this part of Plateau State in central Nigeria. He was on a visit home when around midnight one Sunday, gunmen approached his village. We don't have electricity here. So I went to my father's door. I knocked. Everybody in the house just came out. And then we started to hear gunshots from nowhere.

2:38He started, my house is up there. At the top of the hill. Yes. Oh, yes. So all of us in the house, we ran. That was how we survived. we ran to this hill beyond the maize fields yes back there i was just hearing them chanting shouting allow walkerball saying we will finish them today you hear gunshots and people screaming you know i told you they were here with big ruffles guns and marchettes yes so you hear people screaming some people were even begging them when they catch them you want to kill they'll begging, please, please, leave me, leave me. Just killing people and doors open. So it was very terrifying, like very terrible.

3:23A lot of houses were burned into ashes and people were killed. You see this woman coming, it's really bad. My name is Ladis Dinaka. We hear the gunshot at midnight. Then we started to run away, me and my children. We go hide. They follow us to the farm, run, run, run with the gun, with the lights, looking for us, check for us, to kill us. We hide in the field, and then when they go, we come, we see some people, our brothers and my own house. They killed six of my family. They killed them. So just down the hill, outside of town, come to a marble square platform, and it's a memorial, a marble memorial to the people who died in that attack.

4:16The names inscribed on the stone tablet. You've got Achos Moses, 46 years, Eshaya Moses, 10 years. Ishi Jerry. Ishi Jerry, 58. Nenche Stephen, Nenna Stephen, Mary Stephen. Are they all the same family? Yeah. Moses, look at him and his children here. Jerry Moses, James Moses, Jacob Moses, 7, 10 and 3. It says, in loving memory of the 52 person killed at ZK on April 14, 2025.

4:50This attack lasted for two hours. But the shocking part is that there was no sign of any soldiers. Everywhere was just quiet. Nigerians have lost hope, depending on security personnel, on the military. This was not the only such attack in Plato, but killings on such a scale are not the norm. It's not known exactly who was responsible, no one has been arrested, nor is it known why Zike in particular was targeted. But everyone in Zike is convinced of one thing. Those who attacked them were ethnic Fulani, who are predominantly Muslim. Fulanis, they are the ones that killed us. So the mission of these people is to grab this land.

5:34This is not a clash, it's nothing but a pure genocide. I call it the pure genocide of Christians. They want to wipe out themselves and then grab the land. Fulani leaders called for an independent inquiry into such attacks. The Fulani live across West Africa and are traditionally cattle herders. Many Fulani have long been settled in Plateau State, living in peace alongside other communities, herders and local farmers all together. But two decades ago, ethnic and sectarian violence broke out across Plateau. Many ethnic groups were drawn in. They began arming themselves. Militias were formed. In places, peace was restored, but in others, on and off ever since, there's been attacks leading to reprisals in a relentless cycle.

6:21Do you think there can be peace? A Fulani is not someone that you go and sit down to make peace with. You are wasting your time. If you talk about me making peace with Fulani, I don't have a problem with the full animal man. But me, all I want is please let him avoid me. Let's avoid problems. Please let him go where he come from.

6:48On this Sunday, the church is packed in Zike. It's an evangelical church with links to American missionaries. For many, it's long seen Plato as a Christian stronghold on the fringes of the mainly Muslim north of Nigeria. And though in the north Muslims have largely, but not exclusively, borne the brunt of the violence from bandits and insurgencies like Boko Haram, it's the conflict here in central Nigeria that often lies at the heart of controversial claims of a Christian genocide, claims which have been used to justify US military intervention in Nigeria. So what is going on? I'm Alex Last and this is Assignment from the BBC World Service.

7:43The origins of the violence go back some 25 years and lie here in the bustling mixed city of Joss, the capital of Plateau State. It's a familiar story. Back then, politicians in newly democratic Nigeria sought power by playing on ethnic and religious identity. Plato has more than 50 ethnic groups. Christians are the majority, but many here are Muslim too. In 2001, ethnic and sectarian violence erupted in the city. The violence spread to the countryside. And there it merged with other local grievances and has continued to evolve.

8:28We used to live in peace with the Irigueu people, but with the crisis of 2001, all hell broke loose. Ardo Wadobaziri is a Falani elder who's worked for peace. He's 70 years old. His family lived for generations among the Irigueu people. He says there was intermarriage between communities too across the religious divide. But then in 2001, news reached the community of sectarian clashes in Joss, where more than a thousand people, Muslim and Christian, were killed.

9:04We heard that there was a crisis in Joss. We were surprised to hear there was fighting between local Christians and the Muslim Hausa people. The following day, the Uruguay youth just went into our settlements and set them on fire. 52 of our people were killed. We were forced to move. Some even went to neighbouring states. But he stayed in Plato, renting land from another local community less hostile to the Fulani. And though peace was eventually restored to the city of Joss, violence has continued in the countryside. There, security forces have little presence. Few are ever prosecuted for the violence.

9:44It's created a culture of impunity, a culture of reprisal. Since we moved here, they have tried to attack our community seven times. But more recently, it has been random killings, ambushes, where they kill one here, kill two there, kill three there, five here. Part of the problem, he says, is that in Plateau, local ethnic groups who are mostly Christian are considered indigenous and get preferential access to jobs and, crucially, to land, while many from Muslim communities, like the Fulani, are deemed to be settlers by the local authorities. And they say they're treated as second-class citizens, even if they've lived in Plateau for generations.

10:32after the issue of indigent and settler was introduced all you hear is indigent indigent indigent and they attack and kill those of us who they consider settlers it became so serious and that is one cause of the crisis you see today for many in plateau religion and ethnicity have become so intertwined that an attack on one is often seen as an attack on the other. In areas of heightened tension, people can be killed simply for being Muslim or Christian. But for Ardo Waziri, it's not principally a religious conflict. It's about politics, ethnicity, poverty and competition for resources, as well as simple criminality.

11:14Just a few weeks ago, his son and four other men, Muslim and Christian, were killed in an ambush. Some blame the Uruguay, some say it was an attempted robbery. It's not clear the motive. No one has been arrested. Of course, we are afraid. We are afraid. We are living in constant fear because anything can happen. The violence, though, is not universal. Complicating the narrative of a Christian genocide is the fact that there are neighbouring parts of Plateau where communities still live together in relative peace.

11:55In another part of the state, not far away, lies the town of Mr Ali. There's a wedding going on in the church on the other side of this dusty street. This place has escaped much of the violence. Muslims and Christians live here side by side and they have good relations with other ethnic groups, including the Felani. So this is your community? Yes. And we don't have any problem with anybody. You see there's a church here and there's a mox here. It's got a church and a mosque. Yes. And all of us, we live in peace. We're more than 500 ,000. 500 ,000? Yes. His Royal Highness Chief Dr. Aladi Akinga Kazwa is a Christian and is the traditional ruler of the Penghana peoples.

12:44Out on the streets, he's greeted wherever he goes. And you don't have any problems? We don't have problems. We see them. Everybody clap. Christians, Muslims, fine. Fulani. Fulani, our brothers, Hausa brothers, the indigent brothers, all. Chief Eladi Kazwar takes me into his modest office. He says one reason why there's little trouble here. It's because of how they reacted to the 2001 crisis. He immediately called together the leaders of all ethnic groups in his area to stop any violence spreading from the city to their community. And it worked. We go around, we even went to church with some imams and the Christian and Muslim.

13:29We go to church, we do meetings, we go to mocks, we do meetings for peace. If we see anybody trying to bring problems, we arrest him. No tribalism, no sentiment or different religions. No, God, we worship one God. Crucially, he says, in his area, no one is above the law, no matter their tribe. If you are here, I'm a disciplined and hardworking traditional ruler. I don't tolerate nonsense. Although my son committed an offence, I deal with him. Even my real mother that bought me, I delude her. A traditional ruler has no any party or no party. Everybody belongs to a traditional ruler. As I'm staying here, I don't sleep in the night until I hear my community is safe.

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16:00I'm Alex Last on assignment in central Nigeria. It's not easy to keep the peace. A constant source of conflict is competition for land. It's an issue across Nigeria that often pits farmers against herders, irrespective of faith. It happens that in Plateau and other parts of central Nigeria, most farmers belong to majority Christian ethnic groups, Most herders are Muslim falani. So even small disputes can inflame old divisions or trigger new ones. There's a cow chewing on the stalk of some dried maize. Do you name the cattle? Yes. You have names for each cow? Each cow has names. We all know it, yes.

16:47And if you call them by their names, usually they know, like that one. Yeah. Nori. Nori. Yes, that one. So that. And also this one, Nordi. Nordi. Yes. So that's how you know if any are missing. Yeah. It's like looking for your friends. Hang on, who's not here? Yeah. If anyone is missing here, if there's more boys, no. Because usually you are together with them since when they were born. I'm out in the fields with Aliu Abdalai Isa. He's a 25-year-old Fulani herder. Young herders traditionally move with cattle, sometimes over long distances. in search of pastures and water. But with Nigeria's rising population, more land is being farmed.

17:30Old free grazing areas are being lost. Water sources are becoming more precious. If I'm correct, one cow is the leader. One cow is the leader. And they follow where that cow... They follow you, they follow that cow. So that's how you control. Yes. So which one is the lead cow in this group? Okay, this group. There's about 20 or so white cattle with long horns. This white one? That white one, that one. The one that's eating, bending down eating? Yes. Aha. What's their name? Saige. Saige. Yes, Saige. Now how much is one cow? It's about one million. That's about 500 pounds or 700 dollars. That's a lot of money.

18:16That's a lot of money. Especially here. So that's your walking wealth. That's generations of wealth invested in the cows. Yeah, we are invested. Do you like the lifestyle? Do you like trekking with the cattle? Yes. You actually, you enjoy it? Yes, I enjoy it. I love it seriously, our heritage. I very like to bend with my cattle always, to see them, how they are grazing, yes, how they are moving, and to be very close to them. In the old days, it was a symbiotic relationship between herders and farmers. cows would graze on farms only after the harvest. Their manure would help fertilise the land.

18:56In places, that relationship is now broken down. Some farmers say that these days one of the problems is cattle are eating crops before the harvest. It's a fabrication. Putting cows in the farms is a great sin. It's a great sin. And we are emphasizing our youngest brothers also not to do that. But it does happen. Actually, I can't say that it will not happen usually. You know, one of them, maybe he mistakenly is in the farm. And if it happens, what do you do? If it happens, you must have to pay him, the farmer, because he has his rights. So you pay what? Yes, to have the peaceful resolutions, we are doing that actually.

19:38But in conflict areas, farmers have accused herders of deliberately destroying crops, while herders' precious cattle have been killed or stolen. It all leads to reprisals. Aliu lives in the Fulani stronghold they call Mahanga but which the local, mainly Christian, Birom tribe call Rankum. The two communities used to live side by side in peace until 2001 and ever since they too have been embroiled in a conflict and often it's the innocent who pay the price. I mean, is it quite risky when you're out with the cattle? Yes, sir. Actually, we are experiencing these problems. And many peoples, other tribes like Erigwe and also Broms, they are attacking us several times when we go out for grazing.

20:27Like myself, just a few months ago, I was with my brother called Abubakarwada. Yes, we are in the grazing fields. where some Bermude peoples suddenly appeared and started attacking us, shooting our cuttles. With guns? Yes, with guns. They attack us. They killed my younger brother. That is Aubakarwada. How old was he, your brother? My brother. He's about 14 years old. 14? 14 years old. And what, he was shot? He was shot. Then, you know, when they have started shooting the cuttles, I turned to escape. and I asked him to run also. He ran away, then I managed to run away and escape from them. Because actually I'm very scared.

21:15Yes, because I have no power and I have no way to defend myself. Then we come back and we see my younger brother was killed there. Also the other dead bodies of the cattle that were killed. I think we are going with 85 cattle. And that seven out of it were killed. and the other remaining ones, that is 48 in number, they were sold away and taken away by them. So they wrestled, they stole the cattle? They stole the cattle. And this incident has left my family in pain and suffering. You know, Banyangarabunda was killed. All our wealth was taken. And up to now, we have no idea where the cattle are.

21:55How does that make you feel now? Do you want revenge for your brother? No, actually, it's not that I want revenge. No, I want justice. But among the Fulani, there's not much trust in the authorities. The state government is dominated by people from mainly Christian ethnic groups, many of whose communities have clashed with the Fulani. It's injustice. Injustice from the government and injustice from the security forces. Abdullahi Yusuf Ibrahim is secretary to the influential Fulani chief at Mahanga. His family, like many others, has lived in Plato for generations. Because Fulanis have been attacked, killed, their cows killed, their cows rustled, the government cannot say anything.

22:42Until when it happened to the native, that is when you hear the government shouting and talking on what happened. So I think when that justice is done, we can have peace in Plato's states. What do you say to the accusations that Falani have been guilty of massive attacks on civilian communities, on other ethnic groups, and that you're responsible for genocide? So there is no any Christian genocide in Plateau State. The killing in Plateau State is both sides and is the clashes between farmers and herders. Because of the competition of the land, our own Flani communities are being attacked daily.

23:18But because we didn't have medias as far as what is happening to us, that is why people don't know what is happening to our side. When killing happens, securities are not going to investigate who did that thing in that place. And in a Flani community, if you come, we have some criminals. If you go to the Birom and the other natives, they also have their own criminal. But the problem is that there is no justice for the government. With the violence, communities on all sides have been displaced, each accusing the other of grabbing their land. Off a rough dirt road not too far from Mahanga, a prominent Birom chief, Gang Digom, complains that the Flani are squatting on their land and it's got too dangerous to farm.

23:58He sees it as part of a concerted plan. As we live here, it's fear. We don't sleep. We live in fear. We live in fear. Right now, before I travel to this road, it is an attack ground. The Fulani youths are taking over the road. We leave, go late. They ambush us, take our motorcycle, steal our pocket and our property and run back to their bush. and casualty number. We are more. If you can see around where they have taken over, it's a large space. We cannot even go there. They are bringing their own and settling there. We, our crops, the little crops we found, are being destroyed by the same full line.

24:49We want to reclaim our rights here. He is a settler. We want to reclaim our farms. in response to all this the government has launched peace initiatives and promised to boost security there's been mediation and peace deals that have brought some success the elders are the ones who tend to do the talking they can have considerable influence but it's the youth who do the fighting many have only known conflict armed by their leaders some now have their own agendas and criminality has thrived there are just people who do not want peace to be returned to those communities because they benefit from it.

25:32Before the crisis, there was no large quantum of cattle rustling like we have today. There are people that are feeding on stealing of motorcycles. There are people that are feeding on robbery. There are people that are benefiting from kidnapping. So these places are ungoverned spaces. So when there is conflict, it is them that run the space. We're driving along a sandy track through the countryside, with Jacob Choji Puakim, the founder of Youth Initiative Against Violence and Human Rights Abuse, or YAVA. He's a Birom Christian who works with young people to bring peace. This is another sensitive community.

26:12So can Fulani come to this community? Travel through? Like now, no. You see, by six o 'clock, it is risky for you to go up. By six o 'clock, it is. Whether you're Fulani or Birom. And each community has its own no-go zones? Yes, now. Yes, now. Every community has no-go zones. In fact, do you know that communities, in the night, they don't sleep? Young people, they have to patrol their communities. So when we go for meetings at times, you get to see that young people are sleeping.

26:54Jacob says the state must restore security but lasting solutions also need to be found at the local level. For years his team have worked with both youth and elders to bring communities together to restore relationships, resolve disputes and create security for themselves. He's brought us to see one of his projects funded by the British government which he says shows what's possible. This is one of the farms where we have brought in both pastoralists and farmers, Birom and Fulani, Muslims and Christians, to jointly work together and to discuss, to establish line of friendship. And the process of bringing them together is not always that easy because there are still issues of mistrust and all what not.

27:38Just in front of me is a farm. It's not a huge farm, but there are people in it who are hoeing up the ground just beyond. There's a small river, a small creek, and I can see white cattle and some goats crossing, all guarded by a couple of small young boys. And what's special about this farm, of the people who are farming it? Morning, sir. Morning. Yeah. We are planting the Irish potato. My name is Amos. Amos. Yes. Yes, I'm from Lua community here. I'm Biron. As you can see, we are all together, both Birom and Felani. We are all together, working together, the same together, and everything we are doing together, yes, that's unity.