The Armed Herdsmen
The Fulani militia (often referred to as “Fulani herdsmen” in Nigerian media) are armed groups primarily composed of ethnic Fulani pastoralists, some of whom have taken up violent tactics in conflicts with farming communities across Nigeria, particularly in Benue, Plateau, Taraba, Kaduna, and Southern states. Their activities have led to mass killings, displacement, and a major security crisis.
Who Are the Armed Herdsmen?
The Fulani militia (often referred to as “Fulani herdsmen” in Nigerian media) are armed groups primarily composed of ethnic Fulani pastoralists, some of whom have taken up violent tactics in conflicts with farming communities across Nigeria, particularly in Benue, Plateau, Taraba, Kaduna, and Southern states. Their activities have led to mass killings, displacement, and a major security crisis.
Where did they come from?
While Nigeria has always had a population of Fulani, these were mostly peace loving and had integrated into the society. Then from 2014, a new type of Fulani arrived in Nigeria. This new Fulani was only interested in killing, burning down villages and towns, conquering and occuping new territories, rape, opening up with knives the wombs of pregnant women and killing the unborn babies with which they feed their dogs. Their reign of terror spanned from the North to the Middle Belt where it’s most devastating. They also get to the South West, East and South South.
Today in Nigeria, the Fulani tribe is so dreaded that the mere mention of ‘Fulani’ or ‘Herdsmen’ sends shivers down the spines of Nigerians
These things have not happened in private, but in the open. Anyone familiar with the current affairs of Nigeria in the last 15 years can attest to the accuracy of these issues thus the following has been alleged in several quarters;
It all started in April 2014 when the a retired frustrated northern general assembled his ardent supporters, promoters and strategists to determine how to remove the southern President from power. Prominent amongst them were a certain Retired General and an influential Northern Minister who came from the northwestern state that was known for manufacturing textiles.
A decision was reached to consult Miyatti Allah Cattle breeders association for assistance to boot the southern President out of office. Consequently, the National Chairman of Miyatti Allah was engaged to bring in foreign mercenaries.
Within a month, 2,000 Fulani fighters were brought in from Mali, Senegal, Niger Republic, Chad, Libya to name but a few. Further 4,000 fighters were stationed in Niger and Chad on standby (due to Nigeria’s porous borders)
On arrival, they were assembled in northwestern state under the sponsorship of the influential Northern Minister and were addressed by various Northern Leaders including the spiritual leader of Nigeria’s Muslims, retired generals and several others. Specifically, the retired General in his address told the fighters that “the British handed Nigeria over to us the Fulanis at independence. The land (Nigeria) belongs to us. We must reclaim what belongs to us.” He added that at the event that the southern president won the re-election, the Fulani machinery must fight until they regain control of the country. He assured them that the Nigerian Army was behind them.
The mercenaries received initial training from the Commandant of the Nigerian Defence Academy and were sent to 6 camps in Ekiti State, Benue State, Katsina State, Kaduna State, Zamfara State and Borno State.
In the camps, brand new pick-up trucks, generators etc were provided them. Nigerian Airforce helicopters were used to provide them essential supplies like food, water, drinks and even arms and ammunitions.
Evidently, the southern President lost the election in 2015 through a well orchestrated election organised by INEC under a Fulani Chairman. The retired General was sworn in as the president. This saw the emergence of a Fulani president through a dodgy election hence the planned violent war was averted.
Contrary to expectation, the mercenaries in the various camps were abandoned, no more food and essential supplies. The relationship between Miyetti Allah, the Northern Minister (now a State Governor) and the other retired general broke down. The Northern Minister arrogantly declared that they were not needed anymore and they should go back. Consequently, the killings in his State commenced as a warning to him but it did not bother him. He declared that he had paid the people carrying out the killings and they did not want to stop. The Nigerian police did not bother to call The Northern Minister to give further clarification on this.
The Mercenary at the various camps decided to go about to find food for themselves by robbing people, going into farm lands and kidnapping. Miyatti Allah made several efforts to contact the Northern Minister and other retired general to appeal to them to provide money to return these fighters to where they came from. All efforts proved abortive. The mercenaries at this point vacated their organised camps and took to crime.
The criminal gangs which emanated from these mercenaries were at this point described as “Bandits” to differentiate them from other notorious terrorist groups like Fulani Herdsmen, Boko Haram, etc.
Following the untold destruction and killings which the Bandits carried out especially in Katsina and Zamfara, the Northern leaders in conjunction with officials of Nigerian Government requested Miyetti Allah to intervene and remove the Bandits from Nigeria.
Miyetti Allah returned demanding 150 Billion Naira (~$150 Million) to settle the Bandits and evacuate them. The Government turned the offer down and restricted itself to the payment of 100 Billion Naira ($100 million). Shamefully the CBN governor raised 100 Billion Naira ($100 Million) for the settlement as a condition for his re-appointment as the Central bank Governor.
Miyetti Allah collected the money and purportedly distributed it but nothing changed. In a bid to control the damage, The Retire General who was the President directed that RUGA initiative be setup to create colonies for these fighters in every state in Nigeria. This was rejected by the people of Nigeria.
This group of bandits now made themselves available to serve the peaceful pastoralist as their hired protection and became the Fulani Armed Herdsmen. Furthermore, there was a clarion call made to all the Fulani across west Africa, calling them to come and settle in Nigeria where their kinsman was now the country’s leader (imagine the Yoruba doing a similar thing) thus all the miscreant came in all shapes and sizes to support the armed herdsmen.
Are They “Terrorists”?
- Nigerian government avoids labelling them terrorists (unlike Boko Haram).
- Global Terrorism Index (GTI) once ranked them as the 4th deadliest group (2018).
- Some factions now collaborate with bandits & jihadists in the Northwest.
The truth is armed herdsmen are engaged in a symmetric war against the rest of Nigeria to resettle Fulani vagrants displaced by war from other African countries like Mali, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic etc. Whilst others see them as terrorists, they do not see themselves as terrorists
Key Motivations for Their Violence
Economic Survival
- Loss of grazing lands due to:
– Farmland expansion (Benue, Middle Belt).
– Climate change (desertification pushes them south).
– Government neglect (no adequate ranching policies).
– Cattle rustling (some herders arm themselves for protection).
Ethnic & Religious Tensions
- Muslim Fulani vs. Christian Farmers Narrative (Middle Belt is a flashpoint).
- Historical grievances (Fulani-led Sokoto Caliphate vs. indigenous tribes).
- Settler/colonisers vs Indigenes: Some believe the Fulani armed herdsmen aim to take over the land by conquest (their actions seem to corroborate this i.e. settling in villages where they have killed the inhabitants and taken over the land).
Political & Criminal Exploitation
- Some politicians allegedly sponsor them for electoral violence.
- Criminal elements use the crisis for kidnapping, extortion, and cattle theft.
- Reports of Chadian/Nigerien Fulani and Foreign mercenaries taking part in Killings and conflicts.
Hidden Agendas & Conspiracy Theories
There is a strong argument for the “Fulani Expansionism” theory. As some believe that there is a deliberate agenda to displace locals and seize land. Consistently across the Middle belt of Nigeria, Villages have been razed and taken over by the armed herdsmen, with any persons trying to return to their villages, being are promptly executed. Additionally, none of the Northern Elite have come out to condemn the killings of this group.
Connection to Jihadist Groups
- Not all Fulani are jihadists, but some factions do adopt extremist ideologies.
- ISWAP & Boko Haram freely recruit some Fulani herdsmen.
Government Complicity & Response
- Government response has been wholly inadequate, both Federal and State government have been accused of being negligent at best and complicit at worst. Few herders have been arrested for massacres, talk less of being prosecuted.
- The Ruga Settlements were proposed by the Federal government to provide the herders communities but the people of Nigeria, rejected this due to the perceived lack of transparency. People saw this as a plan seen as “rewarding” herders.
- Some State Governments established Anti-Open Grazing Laws (e.g. Benue, Taraba, Ekiti) to try and tackle the menace of the armed herders but the laws are hard to implement and are often ignored. These laws have even incentivized and spurred the armed herdsmen into more ruthlessness, brutality and viciousness against these communities
- Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS) was initiated by the Nigerian Military task force in Benue with limited success however this military task force seems to be a one off and not a permanent fixture in the state terrain.
- The National Livestock Transformation Plan (NLTP) is yet to be implemented to account for all the collateral damages and extra judicial killings that have taken place.