3 killed as a violent clash erupts between farmers and herders in Abuja, Nigeria

A renewed clash between farmers and herders in Nigeria's Federal Capital Territory has left at least three people dead and several others injured, with shops and houses destroyed in Paikon-Kore community, Gwagwalada Area Council. The violence began on Saturday afternoon and continued into Sunday morning, prompting the deployment of soldiers, police, vigilantes and civil defence personnel to restore order.

According to residents, the immediate trigger was the alleged intrusion of cattle into a groundnut farm with unharvested crops.

The farm owner confronted the herders, and during the altercation, one herder allegedly attacked a farmer with a cutlass, severing his hand. The incident sparked a reprisal in which three herders were reportedly killed, according to the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria chapter in Gwagwalada. Several shops at the community market, two houses and a motorcycle were set ablaze, with goods worth millions of naira destroyed.

Gwagwalada Area Council Chairman Kasim Mohammed Ikwa visited the affected community on Sunday and condemned the violence, announcing plans for a stakeholders' meeting to address the crisis and prevent recurrence. He urged farmers whose crops were damaged to report grievances to authorities rather than resort to self-help. The FCT Police Command had not issued an official statement as of the time of reporting.