Suspected armed herders have reportedly killed two security operatives in Udeku community, Turan district of Kwande Local Government Area, Benue State.
The incident, which occurred on Saturday, has forced scores of residents to flee the area, a community leader, Lawrence Akerigba, said.
He added that all economic and social activities in the community have been brought to a halt.
The deceased officers were among security personnel deployed to maintain peace amid repeated attacks by suspected herders in the local government.
According to an anonymous source, the slain officers, a soldier and a Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps personnel, had left their post on a motorcycle to refill their cooking gas at Aga Market.
“Unfortunately, on their way back, they ran into a roadblock mounted by the Fulani militants.
“They took them unawares, opened fire, and killed them instantly,” the source said.
Youths in the area reportedly mobilised, combed the forest, recovered the charred bodies of the deceased, and took them to the mortuary at Jato Aka.
The attack follows a previous incident last week, when suspected herders invaded the area and killed five farmers.
A senior military officer involved with Operation Whirl-Stroke confirmed the incident, saying, “Yes, a soldier was killed, and he was an aircraftman.”
The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Udeme Edet, clarified that no police officer was killed, but an officer from a sister agency lost his life.
NSCDC spokesperson Michael Ejelikwu confirmed the attack, stating, “Yes, unfortunately, I can confirm that at about 1500 hours on Saturday, 10th January 2026, Fulani militias attacked three security personnel attached to Operation Whirl-Stroke and killed two of them.
“The incident happened at Udedeku, Maav-ya, Mbakyor council ward of Kwande Local Government Area.”
Ejelikwu identified one of the deceased as CCA Tijani Idris (NSCDC S/NO: 76691), from Kaduna State Command, seconded to the Operation Whirl-Stroke Joint Taskforce.
He added that despite the incident, NSCDC remains committed to confronting insecurity in all its forms.
Since the US airstrike on ISWAP camps in Sokoto on December 25, there has been a resurgence of attacks on farmers and security operatives in Benue State.
Traditional rulers in Gwer West and Agatu Local Government Areas, HRH Daniel Abomtse and James Ejeh, have separately raised alarms about the influx of bandits into the state.
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