Suspected Fulani herdsmen on Wednesday (Feb. 5) killed three Christians in Kaduna state, a week after three others were slain in the same area, sources said.
The assailants killed one Christian in Majagada Binawa village, Kauru County in the early hours of Wednesday, and two others in Fadan Rumaya in the same county, area community leaders said.
The attack on Wednesday (Feb. 5) in Majagada Binawa by “armed bandits” between 2 a.m. and 3:30 a.m. took the life of Mani Ali Maikomo, said Istifanus Danjuma Makoshi, president of the Binawa Development Association (BIDA), in a press statement. Five other people were abducted in the predominantly Christian village, he said: Dauda Danjuma Makoshi, Kande Dauda Makoshi, village head Mazuga Sale, Paul Musa Gombe and Solomon Jonah Dangata Binawa, who later escaped but was injured.
“This act of violence is not just an attack on the victims and their families but on the peace and stability of the entire Binawa community,” Makoshi said. “BIDA calls on the Kaduna state government, security agencies, and all relevant authorities to take urgent and decisive action to secure the immediate and safe release of those abducted; bring the perpetrators of this heinous crime to justice; and increase security presence in Binawa and other vulnerable communities to prevent further attacks.”
In the Galadimawa area of predominantly Christian Fadan Rumaya village also on Wednesday (Feb. 5), “bandits” killed Shehu Umaru and Philip Barde and wounded with gunshot Vincent Danjuma, Francis Habila and Amu Bawa, community leaders said in a press statement. They identified five people kidnapped as Shekarau Umaru, Nathan Danjuma, Augustine Samuel, Rdawo Bawa and Christopher Sayi.
“We suffered yet another devastating attack by bandits in which lives were lost, and many more were left traumatized,” they stated. “We strongly condemn this heinous act, which is a blatant disregard for human rights and the safety of rural dwellers in our region. Has our government turned a deaf ear to our plight? We demand urgent action and protection for our communities!”
Area resident Don Abamu said the Christians slain in Majagada Binawa were killed by “Muslim bandits.”
“They also kidnapped dozens of other Christian villagers,” Abamu told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News in a text message. “The killings and kidnappings by Muslim bandits have become a daily routine in Kauru Local Government Area.”
Kauru Local Government Council Chairman Abel Habila Adamu confirmed the attacks.
“The recent surge in violence and attacks in the area has resulted in loss of lives, displacement of people, and destruction of properties,” Adamu said in a press statement. “As a community, we have tried to address these issues through our own initiatives, such as neighborhood watch programs and community policing. However, the situation has deteriorated to a point where we require immediate intervention from the relevant security agencies and the global community.”
In Kumana and Kauru chiefdoms, thousands of people have been displaced and others killed in Dokan Karji, Bandi, Rumaya, Kwassam, Kaibi, Kusheka, Geshere and Binawa villages, among others, he said.
“The cases of abduction of innocent people in the area are alarming and uncalled for,” he said. “Just last Friday a woman was killed by her abductors in Kiffin Chawai after paying ransom as demanded by the bandits. To address this issue, we are calling on the government to establish two military base, one each in Kauru and Kumana chiefdoms, if possible in Dokan Karji and Kaibi. These military bases will provide a permanent security presence in the area, helping to deter attacks and provide a sense of security for the local population, who are now sleeping with their two eyes opened in fear of the unknown.”
Prior Attacks
On Jan. 30 also in Kauru County, a pastor identified only as the Rev. Ezekiel of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) and two other Christians were killed by suspected Fulani bandits in Kwassam village, area sources said. Another 17 Christians were kidnapped in Fadan Ruruma on Sunday (Feb. 2).
Augustine Baye, director of the Baye Child Foundation, said in a press statement that Pastor Ezekiel was ambushed and killed by “bandits,” and that his corpse was found two days later after an extensive search by his family.
“The gruesome killing of Pastor Ezekiel of ECWA Church Kwassam has left the community in shock and mourning,” Baye said.
Pastor Ezekiel had gone to his farm to harvest crops when his vehicle engine ran out of fuel, prompting him to leave to buy gas, according to his wife, Baye said.
“Tragically, he was attacked by bandits on his way back,” he said. “They dragged him away and brutally killed him, leaving his motorcycle abandoned near a river. After two agonizing days, his brother, despite the dangers, embarked on a search and eventually found Pastor Ezekiel’s lifeless body. The sight was harrowing; he had been killed with his head almost severed.”
This tragedy left his widow and four young children with no means of support for school or daily needs, he said.
“Pastor Ezekiel’s murder is a devastating reminder of the insecurity plaguing many communities in Kaduna state, particularly in Kauru LGA,” Baye said. “It highlights the urgent need for improved security and support for families who suffer such losses, ensuring they can rebuild their lives in the face of unimaginable tragedy.”
Area resident Nehemiah James, another resident of the area on his part, called for urgent intervention by the Nigerian government to end the bloodshed.
“The once peaceful villages have been thrown into a state of panic and fear as bandits have taken over the communities, striking fear into the hearts of my beloved people,” James told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News in a text message. “In recent months, the communities have witnessed a surge in kidnappings, with several residents, including old people, being abducted by bandits. The people, who are predominantly farmers and traders, are now living in constant fear, unable to go about their daily activities without looking over their shoulders.”
The kidnappings have also led to a decline in income, as many have abandoned their farms and businesses for fear of being abducted, he said.
“Despite several reports to the authorities, the kidnappings continue unabated, with the people feeling abandoned and helpless,” he said. “The lack of adequate security presence in the areas have emboldened the bandits, who now operate with impunity.”
Daniel Achi of the Community Development Associations’ (CDAs) forum in Kauru Local Government Area said in a statement that bandits have continued to “attack and invade communities almost on a daily basis without fear.”
Achi said a Christian man was recently killed and another injured in Akansa village, and that in Zakada village seven Christians were killed and dozens kidnapped by bandits on Jan. 31.
Sunday Marshall Katung, a senator from the southern part of Kaduna State, recently told a session of the National Assembly that bandits have taken over most of the communities in southern Kaduna state. He called for immediate military intervention.
Nigeria remained among the most dangerous places on earth for Christians, according to Open Doors’ 2025 World Watch List of the countries where it is most diffiucult to be a Christian. Of the 4,476 Christians killed for their faith worldwide during the reporting period, 3,100 (69 percent) were in Nigeria, according to the WWL.
“The measure of anti-Christian violence in the country is already at the maximum possible under World Watch List methodology,” the report stated.
In the country’s North-Central zone, where Christians are more common than they are in the North-East and North-West, Islamic extremist Fulani militia attack farming communities, killing many hundreds, Christians above all, according to the report. Jihadist groups such as Boko Haram and the splinter group Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP), among others, are also active in the country’s northern states, where federal government control is scant and Christians and their communities continue to be the targets of raids, sexual violence, and roadblock killings, according to the report. Abductions for ransom have increased considerably in recent years.
The violence has spread to southern states, and a new jihadist terror group, Lakurawa, has emerged in the northwest, armed with advanced weaponry and a radical Islamist agenda, the WWL noted. Lakurawa is affiliated with the expansionist Al-Qaeda insurgency Jama’a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin, or JNIM, originating in Mali.
Nigeria ranked seventh on the 2025 WWL list of the 50 worst countries for Christians.
Numbering in the millions across Nigeria and the Sahel, predominantly Muslim Fulani comprise hundreds of clans of many different lineages who do not hold extremist views, but some Fulani do adhere to radical Islamist ideology, the United Kingdom’s All-Party Parliamentary Group for International Freedom or Belief (APPG) noted in a 2020 report.
“They adopt a comparable strategy to Boko Haram and ISWAP and demonstrate a clear intent to target Christians and potent symbols of Christian identity,” the APPG report states.
Christian leaders in Nigeria have said they believe herdsmen attacks on Christian communities in Nigeria’s Middle Belt are inspired by their desire to forcefully take over Christians’ lands and impose Islam as desertification has made it difficult for them to sustain their herds.
