Communal clash: 16 killed, over 400 houses torched in Adamawa attacks

At least 16 people have been confirmed dead following coordinated attacks by suspected Chobo militia on Kwah and Gyakan communities in Lamurde Local Government Area of Adamawa State.

Initial reports indicated that 11 people were killed when the attackers stormed Gyakan in the early hours of Thursday before moving to Kwah, located about 20 kilometres away. However, the death toll rose to 16 after additional bodies were recovered later in the day.

A resident, Onisimus Onisimond, said four more bodies were discovered after soldiers arrived in the area around 2 p.m., while further recoveries later increased the number of fatalities.

Carlos Nicodemus, a former supervisory councillor in the area, said the attackers numbering in the hundreds, rode into Gyakan on motorcycles between 5 a.m. and 6 a.m., armed with rifles and machetes. He described the incident as an unprovoked assault on defenceless residents.

According to him, the assailants killed several people, set houses on fire, and looted property before advancing to Kwah, where similar destruction occurred.

“In Gyakan alone, we recovered 10 bodies, while one person was killed in Kwah. Over 400 houses have been destroyed,” Nicodemus said.

He added that security forces arrived more than 30 hours after the attacks began, by which time additional bodies had been recovered, bringing the total number of deaths to 16.

Residents also reported that they were initially unable to bury their dead as the attackers continued to lay siege to the communities until soldiers regained control.

The violence is the latest in a series of clashes in Lamurde, which has experienced ongoing inter-communal conflict between Bachama and Chobo ethnic groups. The unrest has claimed over 200 lives in the past year and prompted the state government to establish a commission of inquiry.

Wali Batakuma, a former village head of Gyakan, described the latest attacks as shocking and brutal.

“We were surprised to see armed groups on motorcycles attacking in such a coordinated manner, burning homes, shooting, and attacking fleeing residents,” he said.

Batakuma also expressed concern over the delayed response by security agencies, noting that intervention came more than a day after the violence began.