{"id":167198,"date":"2025-06-17T07:58:17","date_gmt":"2025-06-17T06:58:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/acf-condemns-yelwata-killings-urges-security-rethink"},"modified":"2025-06-17T09:03:48","modified_gmt":"2025-06-17T08:03:48","slug":"acf-condemns-yelwata-killings-urges-security-rethink","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/acf-condemns-yelwata-killings-urges-security-rethink","title":{"rendered":"ACF Condemns Yelwata Killings Urges Security Rethink"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Nigeria. <\/strong><\/span>The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has condemned the recent killings in Yelwata community of Benue State and called on security agencies to rethink their current strategy in handling violence in the state.<\/p>\n

In a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Professor T. A. Muhammad-Baba, the forum said it was greatly disturbed by the violence that led to the death of many people, including women, children, and the elderly, on Friday, June 13, 2025.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe pray for the repose of the souls of the dead, commiserate with the injured and wish them quick recovery,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n

The ACF described the Yelwata attack as \u201cgruesome\u201d and \u201csenseless,\u201d adding that the killings have continued for too long and are a serious threat to peace in Arewa and Nigeria as a whole.<\/p>\n

The Forum said the farmers and herders crisis in the area seem to defy every attempt at finding a lasting solution.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe gruesome incident at Yelwata is only the latest, in a cascading series of catastrophic violence, pitching farmers and herders, which dishearteningly seems to defy solutions, including decisive action by the Federal Government-controlled security agencies,\u201d the statement read.<\/p>\n

It also noted that the attack happened just days after the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) relocated to Benue State to tackle the insecurity.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat the Yelwata tragedy would take place within days of the COAS\u2019s relocation clearly illustrates that the current security strategy must be reviewed,\u201d the Forum said.<\/p>\n

ACF called for a new and proactive approach that will include more vigilance and better intelligence gathering to stop the violence before it starts.<\/p>\n

It also urged people in Benue and other violence-prone states to reject hate and promote peace.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet us replace fear and anger with empathy, understanding, cooperation, and reconciliation,\u201d the statement added.<\/p>\n

The Forum praised Governor Hyacinth Alia of Benue State for his efforts toward peace, noting that his approach has been inclusive. However, it said justice must be done, and those responsible for the killings should not go unpunished.<\/p>\n

ACF also encouraged community and religious leaders to use their positions to promote peace and tolerance, while discouraging violence and hate speech.<\/p>\n

\u201cMay peace, understanding, cooperation and social harmony return to Benue State and to all parts of Arewa and Nigeria,\u201d the statement added.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Nigeria<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Nigeria. The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has condemned the recent killings in Yelwata community of Benue State and called on security agencies to rethink their current strategy in handling violence in the state. In a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Professor T. A. Muhammad-Baba, the forum said it was greatly disturbed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":167197,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,14],"tags":[1276,16904,254,4935,17789],"class_list":["post-167198","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-acf","tag-benue-killings","tag-nigeria","tag-security-operatives","tag-yelewata"],"yoast_head":"\nACF Condemns Yelwata Killings Urges Security Rethink - Nigeria<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has condemned the recent killings in Yelwata community of Benue State and called on s ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/acf-condemns-yelwata-killings-urges-security-rethink\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"ACF Condemns Yelwata Killings Urges Security Rethink\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has condemned the recent killings in Yelwata community of Benue State and called on s ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/acf-condemns-yelwata-killings-urges-security-rethink\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Nigeria\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-06-17T06:58:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-06-17T08:03:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/sites\/3\/2025\/06\/sm_1750134903.255841.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"933\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/acf-condemns-yelwata-killings-urges-security-rethink#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/acf-condemns-yelwata-killings-urges-security-rethink\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"ACF Condemns Yelwata Killings Urges Security Rethink\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-17T06:58:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-17T08:03:48+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/acf-condemns-yelwata-killings-urges-security-rethink\"},\"wordCount\":394,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/acf-condemns-yelwata-killings-urges-security-rethink#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/sites\/3\/2025\/06\/sm_1750134903.255841.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"ACF\",\"Benue killings\",\"Nigeria\",\"security operatives\",\"Yelewata\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"Policy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/acf-condemns-yelwata-killings-urges-security-rethink#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/acf-condemns-yelwata-killings-urges-security-rethink\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/acf-condemns-yelwata-killings-urges-security-rethink\",\"name\":\"ACF Condemns Yelwata Killings Urges Security Rethink - 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