Abuja, June 16, 2025—Children and girls’ rights organisation, Plan International Nigeria, has condemned the recent violent attack on Yelewata community in Benue State, where hundreds of persons were killed, including children and women.
According to media reports, the community was attacked over two days, from Friday, June 13, to Saturday, June 14, 2025, by armed assailants, resulting in extensive loss of lives and destruction of property.
“This is a deeply disturbing and unacceptable development,” said Charles Usie, Country Director of Plan International Nigeria. “We condemn these recurring attacks that have turned Benue into a killing field. For months now, communities across the state have been subjected to relentless violence, with hundreds of innocent lives, especially women and children.”
He described the attack as a “sickening dimension” of violence that must not be allowed to become the norm. “Beyond the tragic loss of lives, these attacks have far-reaching implications for national stability and economic development. The Nigerian economy is already strained, and sustained insecurity only worsens the plight of everyday citizens,” he said.
Benue State has, over the years, earned and justifiably so, the epithet “the food basket of the nation” due to its green and fertile lands and the industry of its people. It is, therefore, deeply troubling to see it now being portrayed as a region overshadowed by chaos and killings.
The Country Director emphasised “our solidarity with the people of Benue state in this trying period, and our condolences to the people of Yelewata and other communities who have been at the receiving end of the violent attacks.”
In the past year, Plan International Nigeria has carried out two emergency response interventions in Benue State, providing life-saving support to displaced populations in Katsina-Ala, Kwande, Logo, Ukum, Apa, and Agatu Local Government Areas. The support included distribution of hygiene kits, blankets, cash assistance, and essential household items.
Usie concluded by calling on both the federal and state governments to take decisive action, saying, “The responsibility for ensuring security of citizens lies squarely with the government,” while calling on the relevant authorities to “urgently restore peace to Benue and put an end to these senseless killings.”
Note to Editor
About Plan International
Plan International is an independent development and humanitarian non-profit organisation that advances children’s rights and equality for girls. We support children’s rights from birth until they reach adulthood, and enable children to prepare for – and respond to – crises and adversity. We believe in the power and potential of every child but know this is often suppressed by poverty, violence, exclusion, and discrimination.
Working together with children, young people, supporters, and partners, we strive for a just world, tackling the root causes of the challenges girls and vulnerable children face. We have been building powerful partnerships for children for over 80 years and are now active in more than 70 countries, driving changes in practice and policy at local, national and global levels using our reach, experience and knowledge. Plan International is registered in Nigeria with the Corporate Affairs Commission.
Contact Information:
Yunus Abdulhamid - Communications Advisor
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Email: Yunus.Abdulhamid@plan-international.org