At least seven farmers were killed after suspected gunmen attacked the Bum community in the Chugwi area of Vwang District, Jos South Local Government Area (LGA) of Plateau State.
Multiple reports on Thursday disclosed that the attackers, suspected to be Fulani bandits, struck at about 11:00 p.m. on Wednesday, December 31, 2025, when most residents were already asleep.
The assailants reportedly killed the farmers in their homes and nearby farmlands before fleeing the area.
Confirming the incident to journalists on Thursday, January 1, 2026, the spokesperson of the Berom Youths Moulder-Association (BYM), Mr. Rwang Tengwong, said seven bodies had been recovered so far, while search and rescue operations were ongoing in surrounding bushes.
Tengwong noted that the attack occurred despite earlier security alerts warning that several communities in Jos South LGA were under imminent threat.
“The tragic incident occurred despite an earlier security alert indicating that some communities in Jos South LGA had been earmarked for possible attacks.
“Sadly, the Bum community has now fallen victim to this renewed wave of violence. This attack adds to the growing list of assaults on innocent rural communities in Plateau State,” he said.
Security analysts link the Bum killings to an ongoing reprisal cycle triggered by a series of violent incidents involving pastoral and farming communities across Barkin Ladi, Jos East, Riyom, and Jos South LGAs throughout December 2025.
First Daily had reported that five Fulani travellers were attacked on December 27, 2025, near Con Filling Station along Bukuru Express Road, close to Angle D in Jos South LGA.
The victims — Abubakar Aji, Idi Saleh, Sulaiman, Nura Muhammad Detta, and Dabo Abubakar — were reportedly returning from Bukuru Cattle Market when gunmen suspected to be Berom militias allegedly opened fire on their vehicle.
They sustained critical injuries and were taken to the Jos University Teaching Hospital for treatment.
Condemning the shooting, the Plateau State Chairman of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), Alhaji Ibrahim Yusuf, described it as part of a recurring pattern of attacks on Fulani travellers and pastoral communities, and called for urgent investigations and improved security along major roads and commercial routes.
Security sources said the December 27 incident itself followed a deadly attack on December 16, 2025, when gunmen reportedly stormed an illegal mining site at Tosho community in Fann District, Barkin Ladi LGA, killing 12 miners and abducting three others.
The assailants were said to have demanded information on the whereabouts of 171 cattle stolen from the Nding community on December 10.
The violence earlier in the month had begun with widespread cattle rustling. On December 12, herders in the Nding community, Fan District of Barkin Ladi LGA, reportedly lost about 137 cattle. Less than 24 hours later, another rustling incident was reported in the Kukukah community of Jos East LGA, where 34 cattle were taken, though three later returned.
Tensions further escalated after nine cows reportedly died from suspected poisoning around Kwi village in Riyom LGA.
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The situation worsened two days later when four children — Precious Joshuah, 17; Isa’ac Joshuah, 9; Mary Joshuah, 7; and Eve Sambo, 3 — were killed in Dorong village, Foron District of Barkin Ladi LGA, in what residents described as a Fulani reprisal attack. Retaliatory assaults were subsequently reported in other communities, including Gero village in Jos South LGA, where several cattle were killed or fatally wounded.
First Daily correspondent reports that the killing of the seven farmers in Bum community follows a familiar and dangerous pattern: attacks on cattle or pastoral communities, followed by retaliatory violence against farming settlements, and counter-reprisals along ethnic and communal lines.
Despite repeated early warnings, affected communities continue to accuse authorities of slow response, selective enforcement, and failure to decisively dismantle armed groups on all sides.
As of press time, security agencies had yet to issue an official statement on the Bum attack.
Meanwhile, residents fear that without urgent and impartial intervention, the latest killings could trigger further reprisals, deepening insecurity across Plateau State as communities continue to mourn losses from earlier attacks in December.