'Peace is a gradual thing': How land, cattle and identity fuel a deadly Nigerian conflict

## Summary
'Peace is a gradual thing': How land, cattle and identity fuel a deadly Nigerian conflict 19 minutes ago Share Save Alex Last Plateau state Share Save AFP via Getty Images Countless families have been devastated by the violence that continues as the security forces have no presence in much of Plateau state "Around midnight, I heard the first gunshots," recalls Joseph Ize Zino, a youth leader in central Nigeria. It happens that in Plateau, and other parts of central Nigeria, most farmers belong to majority Christian ethnic groups, while most herders are Muslim Fulanis. AFP via Getty Images There are all sorts of peace initiatives at play - like football matches organised between Christians and Muslims aimed at fostering unity "It's injustice from the government and injustice from security forces," says Abdullahi Yusuf Ibrahim, secretary to an influential Fulani chief in Plateau state. "Fulanis are being killed, their cows killed, their cows rustled. He says it is a farmer-herder conflict but only the Fulani are being blamed for the violence. "I think when justice is done, we can have peace in Plateau state." But that sense of persecution and injustice is a sentiment shared by all sides of the conflict.

## Article Content
'Peace is a gradual thing': How land, cattle and identity fuel a deadly Nigerian conflict
19 minutes ago
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Alex Last
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AFP via Getty Images
Countless families have been devastated by the violence that continues as the security forces have no presence in much of Plateau state
"Around midnight, I heard the first gunshots," recalls Joseph Ize Zino, a youth leader in central Nigeria.
He was at home when gunmen attacked the village of Zike inhabited by the Christian Irigwe ethnic group.
"All of us in the house, we ran. That was how we survived."
As he hid in the fields, the young man listened as the attackers swept down through the village in the hills of Plateau state.
"I was just hearing them chanting Allahu Akbar [God is the greatest], saying: 'We will finish them today.'
"You hear gunshots and people screaming, begging."
A total of 52 men, women and children were killed that night in April 2025.
It is not clear exactly who was responsible. But everyone in Zike is convinced that those who attacked them were ethnic Fulani, traditionally cattle herders, who are predominantly Muslim.
"This is not a clash. It's nothing but a pure genocide. I call it the pure genocide of Christians. They want to wipe us off and then grab the land."
Such incidents have fuelled controversial
claims that Christians face persecution, even genocide in Nigeria, which have been used to justify recent US military intervention in the country.
The Nigerian government denies such claims, saying that members of all faiths have suffered amidst myriad conflicts which have engulfed rural parts of the country.
Muslim communities in northern Nigeria, where they are the majority population, have largely borne the brunt of attacks by Islamist militants like Boko Haram and heavily armed gangs. But Christian minorities there have been victims too.
With Nigerian co-operation, so far the US military involvement has focused on the struggle against Islamist insurgents.
On Christmas Day, the US launched missile strikes at suspected Islamist hideouts in the north-west. The US has also said it is deploying about 200 troops to train and assist the Nigerian military in its battles with Islamist militants and other armed groups.
Still the violence in central Nigeria remains a focus for some US politicians. Thousands of Christians and Muslims have been killed in ethnic and religious violence here over the past 25 years. Recently, Christian communities say they have borne the brunt of the attacks.
The conflict in Plateau has its own dynamics. The state has historic links to American missionaries. It is home to more than 50 ethnic groups. Christians are the majority, but many here are Muslim too.
AFP via Getty Images
Tens of thousands of people in Plateau have been repeatedly forced from their homes because of attacks
For decades, local politicians have sought power by playing on ethnic and religious identity.
Those considered "indigenes" by the local authorities get preferential access to jobs and land - they tend to be from mostly Christian ethnic groups. While those considered "settlers" include many from Muslim communities, like the Fulani, even if they have lived on the land for generations.
In 2001, communal violence erupted in the state capital Jos and more than 1,000 people were killed, both Muslim and Christian. More were forced to flee.
The violence spread to the countryside and many different ethnic groups were drawn in.
"With the crisis of 2001, all hell broke loose," says Ardo Wada Waziri, a Fulani elder who has worked for peace for years.
He is 70 years old and says Fulanis lived for generations in peace among the Irigwe people until 2001.
"The Irigwe youth just went into our settlements and set them on fire. Fifty-two of our people were killed."
He says most Fulanis living in Irigwe areas were forced to flee. He settled nearby. But he says the violence has continued.
Just a few months ago, his son was killed in an ambush on his way back from work.
"More recently, it has been random killings. Ambushes, where they kill one here, two there, three here," he says.
"They attack those of us they consider settlers."
For some, ethnicity and religion are so intertwined that an attack on one is interpreted as an attack on the other.
But for Wada Waziri, it is not principally a religious conflict. It is about politics, ethnicity and competition for resources, as well as simple criminality.
There is little security presence in the countryside. Few people are ever prosecuted for the violence, creating a culture of reprisal.
"Of course we are afraid. We are living in constant fear, because anything can happen," he says.
Nigeria has a huge population of Muslims and Christians, who largely live in peace.
Even in Plateau, the violence is not universal. Not far away from Zike lies the town of Mista Ali.
"Everybody is living in peace and we don't have any problem with anybody. All of us live in peace," says Chief Dr Danladi Akinga Kasuwa

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## Expert Analysis

### Merits
- Armed by their leaders, some now have their own agendas and criminality has thrived. "Some people do not want peace to be restored to those communities because they benefit from it," says Jacob Choji Pwakim, the founder of Youth Initiative Against Violence and Human Rights Abuse (YIAVHA).

### Areas for Consideration
- Not far away from Zike lies the town of Mista Ali. "Everybody is living in peace and we don't have any problem with anybody.
- BBC/Alex Last The traditional ruler of Mista Ali, who is a Christian, is popular in the town and says all ethnicities and religions get on well in his area Out on the streets of Mista Ali, he is greeted wherever he goes. "Muslim, Christian, no problem.
- Ever since, they have kept a lid on the conflict. "I don't tolerate nonsense," he tells me. "If we see anybody trying to bring problem we arrest him.

### Implications
- That was how we survived." As he hid in the fields, the young man listened as the attackers swept down through the village in the hills of Plateau state. "I was just hearing them chanting Allahu Akbar [God is the greatest], saying: 'We will finish them today.' "You hear gunshots and people screaming, begging." A total of 52 men, women and children were killed that night in April 2025.
- They can have considerable influence.
- So in the meantime, it is left to people like Abdullahi and Amos to try to make their own peace. "We have started to see change," says Abdullahi.
- Amos agrees: "Peace is a gradual thing that you build and build. "We will continue until we get a perfect peace." You may also be interested in: The kidnap gangs, jihadists and separatists wreaking havoc in Nigeria Are Christians being persecuted in Nigeria as Trump claims?

### Expert Commentary
This article covers peace, nigeria, cattle topics. Notable strengths include discussion of peace. Areas of concern are also raised. Readability: Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.0. Word count: 2166.