Three Farmers Killed in Fresh Plateau Attack Amid Peace Talks

Tragedy struck the Te’ebbe community in Miango District, Bassa Local Government Area of Plateau State, as at least three members of a farming family were killed in a fresh outbreak of violence that continues to afflict the region.

The victims, identified as local farmers, were reportedly ambushed and killed while harvesting tomatoes on their farmland. Two other family members survived the attack but sustained severe injuries and were rushed to Jos for emergency medical treatment.

The attack occurred at a particularly sensitive time—coinciding with a meeting between a state-appointed fact-finding committee, Bassa community stakeholders, and security officials at the local government secretariat. The committee had convened to investigate the ongoing crisis in Plateau State, which has endured sporadic violence since 2001.

Chairman of the committee, retired General Rogers Nicholas, expressed deep sorrow and frustration over the timing and brutality of the incident.

“Today is one of the saddest days of my life,” he said. “As we were engaging with the local government chairman and community members on strategies for peace in Bassa, we received news of the attack. We immediately mobilised to the scene.”

According to General Rogers, the team arrived to find the bodies of three women and one critically injured man, who was barely clinging to life. Another injured individual had already been taken to Jos for treatment.

“The victims were simply harvesting tomatoes when they were ambushed. These were innocent young women,” he lamented. “It’s a heartbreaking and unacceptable situation.”

The committee was inaugurated by Plateau State Governor Caleb Mutfwang to investigate the root causes of the persistent violence and develop a roadmap for peace and reconciliation.

General Rogers urged restraint in the aftermath of the attack. “We appeal to Irigwe youth and other aggrieved parties not to take the law into their own hands. Let the security agencies handle the investigation and bring the perpetrators to justice,” he said.

The deceased have since been taken away for burial, as the community mourns yet another senseless loss in a long-running cycle of violence.