Governor Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau state, Nigeria, urged local “traditional rulers” to organize vigilante militias to protect Christians after a recent string of attacks, presumed to have been committed by ethnic Fulani jihadists, killed dozens and displaced thousands.
Plateau is located in Nigeria’s Middle Belt region, where the majority-Christian south meets the majority-Muslim north. For much of the last decade, roving Fulani gangs have systematically targeted the indigenous Christians of the region for elimination, burning down villages and stealing farmland to graze their cattle. Many of the Fulani denounced by Christian leaders in the region are not from the Middle Belt region and are systematically conquering territory with minimal government response.
The jihadists typically increase the frequency and intensity of their attacks on Christians around Christian holidays, particularly Christmas and Easter. The Christian persecution aid group Open Doors documented at least eight attacks by Fulani jihadists against Christian communities in Plateau since the end of March, “leaving more than 3,000 people displaced.” Among those attacks was a massacre killing nine Christians on April 7, separate attacks killing over 60 people on April 2, including 3 spread through seven villages, and a more recent one killing at least 51 people on April 13, Palm Sunday, in Zikke and Kimakpa villages.
Christians are currently observing Holy Week, the week leading up to the holiest Christian holiday of Easter which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Fulani jihadists have destroyed multiple villages over the past week, devastating local communities.
Mutfwang, the governor, published a message to constituents announcing dramatic measures in an attempt to curb the genocidal violence:
My Dear People of Plateau,
— Caleb Mutfwang (@CalebMutfwang) April 16, 2025
I speak to you not just as your Governor, but as your brother one who deeply feels the pain and sorrow that has again darkened our land.
In the late hours of Sunday, April 13th, the peace of Zikwe Village in Bassa LGA was shattered by a brutal attack… pic.twitter.com/7KLjgyvMdd
“In the late hours of Sunday, April 13th, the peace of Zikwe Village in Bassa LGA was shattered by a brutal attack that claimed the lives of innocent men, women, and children,” Mutfwang narrated. “This comes while we still mourn the tragic loss of over 50 lives in Bokkos.”
“These attacks are calculated, persistent, and painful but Plateau remains unbroken,” he asserted.
While thanking President Bola Tinubu for his support, Mutfwang urged Nigerian Christians to take their safety into their own hands.
“I call on traditional rulers and youth leaders to revive local vigilante patrols in partnership with security forces. We must be united in protecting our land, guided by justice and law,” he urged.
Mutfwang also announced new policies such as banning herdsmen from grazing their animals at night, as well as ending all transportation of cattle or use of motorcycles after 7 p.m.
Mutfwang visited Bassa, the part of his state most affected by the massacres, to apologize to locals.
“I have been crying since yesterday (Monday) because I had trusted God that all the arrangements were put in place, that this will not happen again,” he said on Tuesday. “We have made investments in security. But like all human arrangements, sometimes they fail. I want to admit that on Sunday night into Monday morning, we failed you. Please, forgive me.”
Both Mutfwang and Tinubu, the president of Nigeria, are facing mounting pressure to act to contain the Fulani jihad. The Coalition of Northern Groups, an advocacy group, lamented in a message on Thursday that the Fulani jihadists are not alone in their increased attacks on Christians – Boko Haram, headquartered in the country’s northeastern Borno state, has also increased attacks.
“The recent massacre in Plateau State, where over 100 lives were brutally cut short, communities razed, and families displaced, represents a grotesque failure of governance. These killings are not isolated,” the group noted. “The government’s tepid response has emboldened killers, leaving citizens to question its commitment to their safety.”
In addition to mourning those lost this week to the Fulani attacks, on Monday Nigeria marked the 11th anniversary of the abduction of nearly 300 schoolgirls from Chibok, Borno, by Boko Haram in 2014. At press time, over 90 of the girls the terrorists kidnapped remain missing, most believed to have been forced into sex slavery and work as medics and cooks for the jihadists.
Tinubu, who is Muslim but married to a Christian, published a Holy Week message on Friday vowing to help Christians defend themselves from the onslaught of massacres and wishing Christians a blessed Easter.
“The recent tragic incidents and the loss of lives in some parts of our country deeply saddened me. I understand the pain and fear these incidents have caused,” Tinubu said. “Let me assure you that my administration’s resolve to restore peace and security remains unshakable. Forces of evil will never prevail over our country.”
“I have given clear directives to the Armed Forces and all relevant security agencies to end insecurity decisively and without delay,” he continued. “With the unwavering courage and commitment of our gallant men and women in uniform, we are turning the tide and making steady progress in reclaiming peace and stability.”
Elsewhere in his message, Tinubu celebrated Pope Francis’s recovery from a recent respiratory illness and described Jesus as an inspiration to all Nigerians.
“Just as Christ triumphed over death, so too shall our country triumph over every challenge we face. The present moment may be cloudy, but it will usher in a glorious day,” he concluded.
Tinubu recently welcomed a delegation from Nigeria’s Catholics Bishops Conference for meetings in Abuja to address the violence.
“This insecurity, everyone is affected, Christians, Muslims alike. I have no religious bias; I won’t be a bigot,” Tinubu insisted. “My wife is a pastor of Redeemed Christian Church. But we have to think of our country; this country must develop and must stand beyond religious bigotry. And I’m here open to you, ready to listen.”
Multiple Christian persecution humanitarian groups identify Nigeria as one of the most dangerous places on earth to practice Christianity. Open Doors, which advocates for persecuted Christians, revealed in January that, by its estimates, over 90 percent of Christians killed in 2024 for their faith were killed in Sub-Saharan Africa, most of them in Nigeria.
“Nigeria… has the biggest church auditoriums in the world. But that is in the south,” the group observed. “In the north (and increasingly, the central) regions, Christians are in a minority, and radical Islamic groups, like Boko Haram, and Fulani militants can create havoc.”
