Midnight Horror In Plateau As Gunmen Kill 25 In Bokkos Attack

At least 25 people have been killed after suspected bandits attacked Kawel community in Mushere District of Bokkos Local Government Area of Plateau State in the early hours of Monday.

The attackers reportedly stormed the community at about midnight and opened fire on residents, leaving scores dead and several others injured.

Chairman of Bokkos Local Government Area, Samuel Amalau, confirmed the attack, saying the assailants carried out coordinated assaults on homes and other locations within the community.

According to him, the attackers also invaded a primary healthcare centre, where four people were killed.

A community youth leader, identified simply as Tula, initially claimed that about 30 people lost their lives in the attack.

However, Amalau said authorities had so far confirmed 25 deaths, while efforts were continuing to ascertain the full extent of the casualties.

The latest violence adds to growing security concerns in parts of Plateau State, where several communities have faced recurring attacks in recent years.

Security agencies had yet to issue an official statement on the incident as of the time of filing this report.

The attack comes barely three months after a deadly ambush in the Garga area of Kanam Local Government Area, where at least 20 security personnel and vigilantes were reportedly killed by heavily armed bandits.

The victims were said to include 12 security operatives, among them two senior military officers, as well as eight vigilante members supporting security operations in the area.

According to the Kanam Development Association, the joint patrol team was travelling through communities including Garga, Kyaram and Gyambau when hundreds of armed bandits launched an ambush during a routine security operation.

The association said the attackers later invaded Kyaram community, looting property worth millions of naira and rustling a large number of cattle.

It warned that communities located around the borders of Plateau, Taraba and Bauchi states have continued to suffer repeated attacks, kidnappings and cattle rustling over the past several years.

Monday’s attack in Bokkos is expected to intensify calls for stronger security measures to protect vulnerable communities across Plateau State and other parts of Nigeria’s North-Central region.