British Govt says it is working with the Nigerian Govt towards ending 'unprovoked' attacks by Fulani herdsmen

The British government led by Theresa May has disclosed that it is cooperating with the Nigerian government towards finding lasting solutions to the Fulani herdsmen menace that continues to plague the country.

 This is contained in a letter signed by Angela Almona (Whitehall Nigeria Unit) of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. The letter was written in response to a protest letter earlier submitted to the British government by the Mutual Union of Tiv in the United Kingdom over the killings in Benue State where 73 people were given a mass burial and was addressed to Dr Kohol Shadrach Iornem, the Vice President of the organisation.

May was quoted in the letter as saying:

“We express our concerns about this issue and encourage the government to work with the affected populations to develop a solution that meets the needs of all the communities affected.
“The British Government is concerned about the issue of unprovoked attacks and killing by Fulani herdsmen in Benue and some states and we are engaging the government of Nigeria to find a solution to these killings.”

It will be recalled on January 22, Tiv sons and daughters resident in the UK staged a protest to the office of the Prime Minister and submitted a petition titled: ‘Stopping the systematic killings and displacement of rural farming communities by Terror Fulani Cattle Herdsmen in the Benue Valley of Nigeria’.

The Tiv community requested the British Government to consider intervening in the alleged systematic ethnic cleansing against their people and other tribes in Nigeria. The protesters also requested that the British Government compel the Federal Government of Nigeria to take necessary steps to identify and disarm the Fulani herders and their accomplices while providing protection for the victims.