Fulani herdsmen killed at least 20 Christians in Taraba State, Nigeria, in coordinated attacks, escalating fears of systemic persecution.
Newsroom (13/11/2025 Gaudium Press ) At least 20 Christians were killed in a series of coordinated attacks by Fulani herdsmen in Nigeria’s Taraba State between November 9 and 11, intensifying concerns over escalating Christian persecution in the West African nation. The assaults, targeting homes and places of worship in multiple settlements within the Wukari Local Government Area, have left communities reeling and raised questions about the Nigerian government’s response to the violence.
According to Truth Nigeria, the attackers stormed villages, firing “indiscriminately into houses” while shouting “Allahu Akbar.” Christiana Joseph, a 33-year-old farmer from Amadu village, recounted the horror of the assault. “I was preparing to go for Mass early in the morning around 6 a.m. when I heard the sound of motorcycles,” she told Truth Nigeria. “I was in the kitchen when they stormed into our compound, surrounding it and shooting into the main house. They fired for about five minutes. When the gunfire stopped, I went inside and found my husband of 14 years, John Joseph, already dead.”
Father George Dogo of the Holy Family Cathedral in Wukari reported that bodies were still being recovered from the rubble, suggesting the death toll could rise. The attacks are part of a broader wave of violence across Nigeria, with Emeka Umeagbalasi, director of the International Society of Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law (Intersociety), estimating that at least 78 people were killed nationwide during the same period. Umeagbalasi described a grim reality of systemic persecution, with thousands of Christians held captive in forest camps across multiple states.
“Hundreds of Christians, up to 800, are still being held in the Rijana forest camp despite the proximity of that place to about two military camps,” Umeagbalasi told Crux. He identified additional camps, including the Sule Keneko camp and one near Danjuma farms in Taraba State, where Fulani herdsmen are allegedly holding Christian hostages. Umeagbalasi painted a chilling picture of escalating violence, noting that in Enugu State, at least 14 parishes—12 Anglican and two Catholic—have faced consistent attacks since 2021.
The violence has reached unprecedented levels in 2025, with Intersociety reporting that at least 7,000 Christians were killed in Nigeria between January and November. The Yelewata Massacre in Benue State in June, which claimed 280 lives in a two-day assault, marked a horrifying peak. Other attacks, such as the Sankera Massacre in April, where 72 individuals were hacked to death, and subsequent raids in Gwer West, have compounded the crisis.
Umeagbalasi accused Nigerian authorities of complicity, alleging that security forces fail to respond during attacks and suppress witnesses afterward. “Whenever they are under attack, if you call soldiers, they will not pick their call,” he said. “But after the attack, they will come and start picking corpses. They will seize all the mobile phones around that place and arrest their owners, labeling them conspirators.” He further claimed that church volunteers who speak out are arrested, detained, and pressured to describe the violence as “communal clashes” rather than attacks by “Fulani jihadists.”
Recent massacres underscore the scale of the crisis. In Taraba State, up to 30 Christians were killed in separate incidents, while nine, including a pastor, were murdered in Plateau State, and 10, including another pastor, were killed in Kaduna State. Umeagbalasi warned that large “Fulani jihadist camps,” such as one in Benue South holding up to 800 captives near military formations, operate with impunity.
The U.S. government’s recent designation of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern, announced by President Donald Trump, acknowledges the “systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom” in the country. However, Umeagbalasi cautioned that the designation alone is insufficient without targeted action. “The Nigerian government is using every crooked and falsified means to mislead the U.S. into believing they have started doing something,” he said. He urged the U.S. to focus on specific groups, such as the Fulani jihadists, to curb the violence. “Once you are able to target these people, things will change,” he insisted. “Without direct and pinpointed intervention, the extermination continues.”
As Taraba State buries its dead and survivors like Christiana Joseph mourn their losses, the international community faces growing pressure to address what many describe as a campaign of targeted persecution against Nigeria’s Christian population. For now, the violence shows no signs of abating, leaving communities in fear and advocates calling for urgent global action.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from Crux Now
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