By Dalena Reporters l January 1, 2026
LAFIA, NASARAWA STATE, Nigeria — In a significant upsurge of communal violence in central Nigeria, suspected Fulani herdsmen on Tuesday, December 30, 2025, launched a deadly attack on the Akunza-Ashigye community near Assakio in the Lafia East Development Area of Lafia Local Government Area, leaving at least four persons dead and more than 45 others wounded. The assault has reignited fears of escalating conflict between nomadic herdsmen and local farming populations in Nasarawa State.
Eyewitnesses described the incident as sudden and violent, with gunmen reportedly opening fire on villagers in what appears to be a reprisal attack linked to longstanding tensions between Fulani herders and Akunza-Ashigye residents. According to community sources, the assault may have been triggered by a recent ambush on two herders returning from a cattle market in Lafia, during which one herder was killed.
Mr. Jonathan Adamu, a resident of Akunza-Ashigye who spoke to reporters, suggested the retaliatory nature of the violence, saying that the killing of the Fulani herder near a bridge shortly after leaving the community might have provoked the subsequent armed attack.
The toll from the attack remains difficult to verify amid conflicting reports, but official and local sources converge on multiple fatalities and dozens of injuries. Health facilities in Lafia were reportedly overwhelmed as dozens of wounded victims were rushed in for treatment following the violence.
The incident reflects a broader pattern of periodic clashes in central Nigeria, particularly between nomadic herders and sedentary farming communities competing for land and water resources. Nasarawa State, part of the wider Middle Belt region, has experienced repeated intercommunal violence in recent years, often erupting into deadly confrontations with significant civilian casualties.
Security forces were reportedly deployed to the area following the attack, though residents express concern over the persistence of such violent flare-ups and the apparent absence of sustained protection for vulnerable rural communities. State authorities have yet to issue a comprehensive public statement, while local police are understood to be investigating the incident and pursuing leads on the assailants’ identities.
Civil society and community leaders have condemned the violence, warning that unresolved grievances over resource competition and reprisal cycles could further destabilize the region and jeopardize ongoing efforts at peacebuilding and rural security.
As investigations continue, observers underscore the need for enhanced dialogue, conflict mitigation, and improved security infrastructure, measures deemed essential to curb the recurrent pattern of herder-farmer clashes that have plagued Nasarawa and other parts of the Middle Belt.