Soldiers arrest 10 Fulani cattle herdsmen in Benue State as they attempt to destroy farmlands

NIGERIAN Army troops have arrested 10 Fulani cattle herdsmen in Benue State as part of the ongoing military operation Exercise Ayem Akpatuma on suspicion of destroying farm lands belonging to local farmers.

Over recent years, Nigeria has been plagued with the menace of heavily armed Fulani cattle herdsmen attacking local farming communities as disputes over grazing rights have led to clashes. In response to farmers objecting to livestock destroying their crops, the herdsmen, equipped with AK47s have been known to lay waste to villages, leaving hundreds dead.

In a bid to seek a solution to the problem, the Benue State government passed the Benue Open Grazing Prohibition Bill but some herdsmen refused to accept it and went on a rampage in protest. In response to the crisis in the state, the Nigerian Army has been deployed there under the operation Exercise Ayem Akpatuma.

Nigerian Army spokesman Brigadier Texas Chukwu,  said: “The effort of the Nigerian Army to fish out criminals and protect farmlands in Benue State and it environs is yielding tremendous results as troops of Sector One Sub-Sector A, deployed at Yelwata while on routine patrol arrested 10 herdsmen destroying farmland at Tse-Tigir and Tse-Ndugh villages on Monday February 26. While in the act of destroying the farmland, the herdsmen sighted the aggressive troops and fled into the bush but the determined troops pursued and arrest them.

“Items recovered include five motorcycles, two machetes, some assorted charms and the sum of N120,000. These suspects and the recovered items were handed over to the Nigerian Police Force for further necessary action."

He added that the Nigerian Army is determined to fish out criminals and recover weapons use in killing innocent citizens. Brigadier Chukwu called on the members of the public to cooperate and support the army in its ongoing exercise.