Beyond Benue: Rising atrocities in Southeast demand equal urgency

By Okechukwu Nwanguma,

While public and international attention is rightly focused on the latest gruesome massacre in Benue State — yet another testament to the failure of Nigeria’s security architecture — it would be a grave injustice to ignore the equally brutal, yet underreported atrocities unfolding in the Southeast.

In recent weeks, communities in Enugu and Abia States have become killing fields, with terror herdsmen—suspected to be armed Fulani militia—unleashing coordinated attacks that have left dozens dead, many displaced, and countless others traumatized.

Yet, unlike the widespread condemnation and emergency response that usually follow similar attacks in Benue, Plateau or Kaduna, the Southeast bleeds in relative silence, abandoned by a state that has seemingly normalized mass killings in its fringes.

Enugu: Eight years of carnage and counting

On Sunday, June 16, the sleepy community of Aguamede in Eha-Amufu, Enugu State, was shattered when suspected herdsmen invaded without warning, slaughtering over ten villagers using machetes. Witnesses described the chilling efficiency with which the attackers operated — entering homes and butchering victims with impunity.

What’s even more alarming are reports that helicopters were seen hovering over the community earlier that day, suggesting either aerial surveillance or a possible coordinated drop-off. This is not the first time such claims have emerged from rural communities in the Southeast, and yet they are seldom investigated.

The same day, residents of Ikpakpara and Aguamede villages were attacked again while some were still in church. Eyewitnesses recounted how the assailants butchered their victims “like cows.” Bodies were later recovered with deep machete wounds to the skull — a grotesque hallmark of previous attacks in the region.

These are not isolated events. Since 2017, the people of Eha-Amufu and neighbouring Ikem have endured serial attacks that have killed hundreds and displaced thousands. Every few months, new reports surface, but the response from security agencies remains shamefully inadequate — if not completely absent.

Abia: Another flashpoint ignored

In Isuochi, Umunneochi LGA of Abia State, terror herdsmen once again struck with deadly force. The Abia State Commissioner for Information, Mr. Okey Kanu, confirmed “fatalities” and described the situation as “serious.” But as with previous statements, the details were vague, and concrete action was absent.

The attack, which mirrors the violence in Enugu, involved scores of lives lost and communities thrown into mourning. And like clockwork, there were the same patterns: remote, unprotected communities; late or no response from security forces; and official silence that does nothing to deter future attacks.

A dangerous double standard

Why is it that when similar attacks occur in Benue or Plateau, they spark national mourning, high-level visits, and international outrage — but when Igbos in Eha-Amufu or Isuochi are butchered, the silence is deafening?

This is not to downplay the horrors suffered by victims in the Middle Belt — rather, it is to demand equal protection, equal justice, and equal outrage for all Nigerians, regardless of their region or ethnicity.

Violence is violence. Death is death. And the failure of the state to protect its citizens — wherever they may live — is a moral failure that undermines the very idea of a united Nigeria.

The Federal Government’s deafening silence

Despite years of sustained killings in these Southeast communities, the federal government has failed to develop a coherent response plan. There are no special security deployments. No public visits by top officials. No federal humanitarian assistance. Not even a firm statement of condemnation.

Instead, the Southeast is left to fend for itself, fueling resentment, deepening regional distrust, and undermining faith in the federal structure.

If the Enugu and Abia killings had happened in another region, it is almost certain that Abuja would be on high alert. This persistent disparity in state response fuels a dangerous perception: that some regions are more valued than others.

A call for action — Not sympathy

The people of Enugu and Abia — and the Southeast at large — do not want sympathy. They want protection. They want their government to take their security concerns as seriously as it takes others’. And they deserve to live without the constant threat of machete-wielding terrorists descending upon their homes like vultures.

It is time for:

– A full-scale federal investigation into the recurring attacks in Isi-Uzo and Umunneochi, including probing the alleged use of helicopters.

– Deployment of rapid response security units to vulnerable border communities in the Southeast.

– Equal media coverage and national outrage, to affirm that the lives of Southeast citizens are not disposable.

– Justice and compensation for the victims, and accountability for complicit or negligent officials.

One country, one standard

The Southeast is bleeding. Its rural communities are being ravaged by terror herdsmen with little to no protection. Its dead are buried quietly, its displaced are ignored, and its cries for help echo into a void.

This cannot continue.

A government that claims to lead a united country must protect all its people equally. And a society that values justice must ensure that no community suffers in silence while others are avenged in full view.

It is time to break the silence.

It is time to act.

It is time to stand for the Southeast — before more lives are lost to indifference.

Nwanguma, Human Rights Advocate