Fatal armed attacks occur in Nigeria's Kaduna and Benue states

At least 30 people were killed, including eight children, during an armed attack on the village of Naridon in the Kauru area of Kaduna state, Nigeria, on July 27, 2026. Witnesses reported that gunmen indiscriminately opened fire and set houses ablaze around midnight. No group has yet claimed responsibility for this assault in the country's northwest, a region frequently targeted by criminal gangs.

Separately, on July 28, 2026, at least 14 people were killed in the village of Efeyi in the Otukpo area of Benue state. Local official Maxwell Ogiri attributed this attack to members of the Fulani tribe. This incident follows a long-standing pattern of violent clashes in central Nigeria between nomadic Fulani herders and local farmers, who are often divided along ethnic and religious lines, primarily over land and water rights. Representatives of the Fulani have consistently denied involvement in these attacks.

While the Kaduna attack is linked to the ongoing regional security crisis involving criminal gangs and Islamist insurgencies, the Benue incident highlights the persistent ethnic tensions affecting rural communities. Authorities have not yet made arrests in connection to these massacres, and security remains a significant challenge across the affected states.