A little over two decades ago, Plateau State was known as the “Home of Peace and Tourism”, a slogan that was coined as a result of the peaceful ambience that pervaded the state
Plateau State had a reputation as a peaceful sanctuary that drew tourists both within the country and abroad as residents and visitors lived in harmony.
But all that has been severely challenged by years of persistent and deadly conflicts, which have gone through a series of descriptions from ethno-religious conflicts to farmer-herder clashes to land grabbing and most recently, Christian genocide and an attempt to Islamize the state by Islamist extremists and terrorists.
The most significant violence that rocked the state to its very foundation occurred in 2001, when an estimated 1000 people were killed in an ethno-religious conflict, and since then, every other year has witnessed different forms of violence, thus turning the once peaceful state into a killing field.
Over the years, Plateau State has experienced significant long-term violence which has led to over 10,000 deaths, billions of naira worth of property destroyed, and hundreds of thousands displaced and now live in displaced peoples’ camps.
The violent attacks now seem to have relocated to local communities, with attackers often identified as Fulani militias and terrorists wreaking havoc on local communities.
Lands have been taken over, thousands killed and displaced in places like Bokkos, Barkin Ladi, Kanam, Wase, Riyom, Bassa, Mangu, Jos South and East local government areas and as it stands, despite efforts by successive governments, these violent attacks have refused to go away.
From 2001 to date, no year has proven more bloody than 2025 when thousands of innocent souls were lost to those attacks, especially in rural communities of Plateau State.
Between October 2025 and March 2026, the state experienced a surge in communal violence characterized by a cycle of ambushes, communal attacks, invasions, land-grabbing attacks, livestock killings, reprisal attacks, and sometimes, unprovoked attacks which always end up in unprecedented loss of lives.
A look at a cycle of known and reported violence between October 2025 and March 2026
October 8, 2025:
On October 8, 2025, a suspected militia gang ambushed a commercial vehicle along the Mangu-Jos road near the NYSC orientation camp and killed three people whose names were given as Zainabu Sule, Hajara Musa, and Abdulrahman Adamu.
October 14-15, 2025:
In what many believed to be a reprisal attack for the October 8 killing, suspected Fulani bandits attacked the Rachas and Rawuru,
communities in Barkin Ladi, killing 13 people, including five young children.
November 1 2025:
On November 1, 2025, suspected Fulani militias staged an attack on the Kwi community in Riyom LGA where seven people were killed following an earlier attack on herders where some cows were reportedly killed and stolen by local youths.
November 5, 2025:
Two people, including a youth leader, were killed in Rachi, Bachi District of Riyom LGA by suspected Fulani militants amid reports of livestock poisoning and rustling in Riyom and Barkin Ladi.
December 1, 2025:
On December 1, 2025, a local farmer identified as Yakubu Salisu was attacked and killed in the Tenti community of Bokkos LGA while at least six people were attacked and killed in the Kwi community of Riyom LGA.
On December 11, 2025, gunmen attacked herders and rustled no fewer than 168 cattle in the Nding community of Barikin Ladi.
On December 15, 2025, the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, MACBAN, reported that gunmen opened fire on herders, killing 13 cattle and injuring 12 others along Gero road, Jos South LGA.
December 16, 2025:
On December 16, 2025, armed bandits suspected to be Fulani militants, raided a mining site in the Tosho community in Barkin Ladi LGA, killing 12 miners and abducting three.
On December 17, 2025, the Berom Educational and Cultural Organization (BECO), said no fewer than 12 miners were killed by gunmen while many others were missing following an attack on the Fan district of Barkin Ladi LGA.
December 18-19, 2025:
Between December 18th and 19th, armed terrorists laid siege on Dorong village in Barkin Ladi and Gero village in Jos South LGAs, and by the time they were through, four members of a family whose names were given as Precious, Isa’ac, Mary, and Eve Joshua, were killed.
December 27, 2025:
On December 27, 2025, five Fulani youths were ambushed and shot along Bukuru Express Road in Jos South while returning from a market.
December 31, 2025:
On December 31, 2025, suspected Fulani militias invaded and attacked the Bum community in Jos South LGA where seven people were killed and several others injured.
On January 1, 2026, at least nine farmers were reportedly killed and three others injured in a fresh attack in the Bum community in Chugwi, Vwang District of Jos South LGA.
On January 2, gunmen reportedly attacked Bong village in Doemak district of Qua’an Pan lga, killing seven persons and injuring many others.
On January 4, bandits attacked the Saran Allah community, Garga district in Kanam LGA killing one and abducting two others.
January 7, 2026:
On January 7th, 2026, there were coordinated attacks and ambushes across Jos South and Jol in Riyom LGA, resulting in multiple fatalities including pastoralists and local farmers.
On January 8, six farmers were attacked and killed with one other injured in separate attacks in Foron and Gero communities of Jos South and Barkin Ladi LGAs.
On January 12, eleven cattle were allegedly shot dead and poisoned in two separate communities of Riyom and Barkin Ladi LGAs.
On January 15, MACBAN reported that 102 cattle were allegedly rustled after gunmen attacked the herding community in the Ganawuri community of Riyom LGA.
On January 17, three farmers were reportedly killed and one other was injured when gunmen attacked farmers around Nding village, Barkin Ladi LGA.
On January 19, 2026, bandits attacked the Kyaram community, Garga district of Kanam local government area of the state, killing a man and abducting his housewife and daughter.
On January 22, seven farmers were killed when gunmen attacked a mining site around the Kuru axis in the Kuru district of South LGA.
January 23, 2026:
On January 23rd 2026, seven people were killed at a mining site in Gakok community of Jos South LGA by suspected Fulani militants.
On January 25th, 2026, troops of the Operation Enduring Peace engaged bandits in the Kedeshi community in Qua’an Pan LGA, leading to the death of at least 10 people.
On February 3, 2026, five residents and a soldier were killed when bandits attacked the Zurak community in the Bashar district of Wase LGA.
On February 4, bandits again attacked the Zurak community, forcing residents to flee the area. Residents said the bandits first targeted security points in the communities and proceeded to the residential areas, burning houses, shops, and looting food items.
On February 9, gunmen stormed the Dogon Ruwa community in the Bashar district of Wase LGA, killing a resident and kidnapping an Imam, Abdulrashid Baduku, and six others in the area.
On February 16, at least two residents were shot dead by armed bandits in a renewed attack on the Garga community, Garga district of Kanam LGA.
On February 19, gunmen attacked and killed three herders along the Dorowa-Jong road in Barkin Ladi LGA.
On February 21, a farmer, identified as Sunday Darian, was reportedly shot and killed in the Jol community of Riyom LGA.
On February 23, six traders were killed when gunmen ambushed their vehicle while travelling from Jos to Pankshin LGA to conduct their business at the popular Pankshin Monday market.
On March 1, security operatives repelled a suspected bandit attack at Kampani village in Wase LGA. It was gathered that the heavily gunmen laid siege on the community and shot sporadically, killing at least 11 people and injuring several others in the process. It took the intervention of security personnel to prevent the attackers from causing serious havoc in the community.
On March 13, bandits ambushed and killed security personnel including 20 soldiers and 12 vigilante operatives in Kanam LGA. The joint patrol team was ambushed by the heavily armed attackers near Wanka while moving through Garga, Kyaram, and the surrounding communities in the council. Following the attack, the assailants allegedly moved into nearby villages where they looted property and rustled cattle.
On March 29, Plateau State witnessed perhaps one of the deadliest attacks in recent times when yet to be identified gunmen invaded the Gari Yawaye community in Angwan Rukuba, Jos North LGA, killing over 30 people, and injuring several others.
It was learned that the gunmen who were dressed in the uniform of National Drug Law Enforcement officers, stormed the community on motorcycles and shot sporadically, killing the victims in the process.
The Palm Sunday massacre led to a spiral wave of violence in several parts of the state, prompting the state government to impose a curfew in the Jos North council.
