On 12 January, armed groups killed at least 40 farmers and abducted at least 10 others in Kukawa Local Government Area (LGA) of Borno State, Northeast Nigeria.
The attack highlights the trend of increasing violence against civilians, the last incident in this LGA having occurred less than a month ago and resulted in the killing of 14 civilians.
Armed groups deliberately target civilians engaged in livelihood activities such as agriculture and fishing in areas controlled by them. Non-compliances with armed groups’ rules and levies often leads to abductions, killings and violence, reinforcing the armed group’s control over the population.
15 years of conflict in the Northeast has claimed the lives of some 35,000 civilians and humanitarian needs remain profound with 7.8 million people in need and 2.3 million people still displaced. Close to 5 million people are projected to be in food crisis in the 2025 lean season and almost half a million in pre-famine condition. Life-threatening malnutrition rates among children are alarming with almost 1 million suffering from severe acute malnutrition.