LAGOS, Oct. 23 (DPA/EP) –
At least 50 people have been killed and 20 more injured in clashes between Fulani herdsmen and farmers in the town of Gbeji in Benue state in western Nigeria, authorities said.
A government spokesman, Terver Akase, has informed the DPA news agency of fifty deaths, although so far only 36 bodies have been recovered.
The incident dates from Wednesday, although it has only transpired this weekend, when it has been known that most of the inhabitants of the town have fled.
Conflicts over fertile land are a common source of violence in Nigeria. Last week another 22 people died very close to Gbeji.
The Fulani, nomadic herders, have had to leave the north of the country due to the severe drought and have invaded traditional farming areas in the center and south of the country.
