The Lamentation of Vershima
If you don't flee from the devil
He will do worse evil!
The nomadic beasts of no nation
They trampled on my plantation
They came from across the borders
The mooing herds and their wandering headers
They invaded my farmlands with their animals
Animals with one thousand horns
and two thousand hooves.
They came before the first raindrops
They trampled on my virgin crops.
They broke the maiden head of Dooshima, my beloved daughter
When she went early to the stream to fetch water.
She crawled back home bleeding in pains and tears.
Her agonies left me with chilling fears.
Her wailing mother Mimidoo,.was rolling on the floor.
I was shaking as I bolted the door.
The arrows have pierced my heart.
The horrors have torn me apart.
I have harrowing agonies that cannot be written.
I have eerie nightmares that you have not seen.
The unseen tears I have shed
As I was writhing in my broken bed.
Aondo! Aondo!! Aondo!!!
Aôndo u Ijirôron!
U ngu hana hegon?
Va tese er u lu Aôndo u ageegh yô!
Are you no longer our defender?
I have abandoned the Kwagh-Hir!
I have torn my A'nger in anger.
There is no one to sound the indyer!
Otapia, the town crier can no longer cry
His booming voice no longer echoes in the sky.
There is no one left to receive his message
Since we have fled from our village.
- - By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima,
On Saturday,. January 16, 2026.
Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria.
For my new book of my original poems, "Dance of Locusts".
PS:
The first sentence shows that the herders trespassing on the lands of the Middle Belt of Nigeria actually don't believe in borders of any nation. Majority of them don't have any passport of any national identity.
All the names are in Tiv language.
Aôndo u Ijirôron!
U ngu hana hegon?
Va tese er u lu Aôndo u ageegh yô!
Means
God of Justice!
Where are you now?
Come and show that you are the mighty God!
Background History and Recent Reports
Key Aspects of the Crisis
Victims and Perpetrators:
The violence disproportionately affects indigenous, predominantly Christian, farming communities, with perpetrators often identified by survivors and some reports as Fulani ethnic militias.
Scale and Impact:
The conflict has led to thousands of deaths (some estimates suggest over 60,000 across the region over decades) and the displacement of millions, creating a significant humanitarian crisis and worsening food insecurity. In Benue State alone, over 6,800 people were reportedly murdered between 2023 and May 2025.
Narratives and Terminology:
There is a significant dispute over how to describe the conflict.
"Ethnic Cleansing" / "Genocide": Local leaders, victims, and advocacy groups argue the term "ethnic cleansing" or "genocide" is more appropriate than "farmer-herder clashes". They point to patterns of systematic attacks, the burning of churches, and the permanent displacement of communities, followed by new settlement in those areas. The Middle Belt Forum has demanded a UN inquiry into the alleged genocide.
Farmer-Herder Clashes: Successive Nigerian governments and some international agencies have tended to frame the violence as a result of resource competition (land and water) exacerbated by climate change and population growth.
This narrative is criticized by many victims as a form of denial that obscures the ethnic and religious motivations of the attacks and absolves perpetrators of accountability.
Historical Context:
Tensions are rooted in long-standing historical grievances, including the 19th-century Islamic jihad led by Usman dan Fodio and resistance to the subsequent Sokoto Caliphate's influence. These historical narratives shape contemporary perceptions, with some viewing the violence as a continuation of historical aggression.
Government Response:
The Nigerian government has faced severe criticism for its perceived failure to protect victims, ensure accountability, and address the underlying causes of the violence.
There is a widely held belief among affected communities that security forces are either indifferent or complicit.
International Attention: While international bodies have been warned of worsening atrocities in the region, the focus has often remained on other issues like Boko Haram.
The lack of international recognition of the crisis as "genocide" or "ethnic cleansing" is a major point of contention for advocacy groups.
The situation remains a complex and devastating crisis, with ongoing violence and an urgent need for nuanced attention and effective intervention to address the intertwined ethnic, religious, and socio-economic dimensions.
Middle Belt - Wikipedia
Ethnoreligious conflicts. ... Surrounded by divergent religious, economic, and cultural histories, the Middle Belt has been the melting pot where small and larg...
The violence in Nigeria's Middle Belt has long historical roots.
11 Aug 2025 —
There is systematic violence taking place in Nigeria's Middle Belt, writes Onyedikachi Madueke. The government calls it local skirmishes, but the reality goes d...
The London School of Economics and Political Science
Conflict and Killings in Nigeria's Middle Belt
17 Dec 2020 — The underlying causes of the conflict in Nigeria's Middle Belt are complex and varied. They include competition for access to land and other resources between p...
Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission | (.gov)
Middle Belt Civic Leaders Decry Ethnic Cleansing and Unchecked ...
16 May 2025 — Civic Coalition Warns of National Implications. The Civic Coalition's May 14th statement echoes this distress. Describing the violence as a “region-wide campaig...
Truth Nigeria
Climate Cover, Ethnic Crime: The Story Behind Nigeria's Middle Belt ...
10 Nov 2025 — A TruthNigeria Analysis: Nigerian Government Denial Gets Propped up by False Narratives. ... (Abuja) For more than a decade, Christian communities across Nigeri...
Truth Nigeria
Long Read: Violence in Nigeria's 'Middle Belt' States
19 Mar 2021 — So what can we do about these Challenges? * Religious persecution: While the underlying causes of violence are complex, attacks in the Middle Belt by Islamist F...
Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust (HART)
The Politics of Eco-Violence: Why Is Conflict Escalating in ...
19 Oct 2022 — 20 According to a 2021 study, 309,231 individuals were displaced in the Middle Belt, with 204,193 displaced due to communal violence in Benue State alone, makin...
Taylor & Francis Online
Ethnic cleansing in the Middle Belt Region of Nigeria
Conclusion: Ethnic cleansing. ... There have been continuous attacks against Christians in the Middle Belt to force them to leave their ancestral land. As a res...
Open Doors Analytical
Silent Emergency: The Unending Cycle of Ethnic ...
1 Feb 2025 — HumAngle explores the ethnic, religious, and environmental roots of the farmer-herder conflict in Nigeria's Middle Belt, its devastating toll on communities, an...
HumAngle
UN warned of worsening atrocities in Nigeria’s Middle Belt
1 Dec 2025 — UN warned of worsening Atrocities in Nigeria's Middle Belt
International Bar Association | IBA
In Nigeria's diverse Middle Belt, a drying landscape deepens violent ...
8 Mar 2018 — Violent clashes between semi-nomadic cattle herders like the Fulani and farming communities have increased in recent years – particularly in Nigeria's Middle Be...
The Christian Science Monitor
Fulani Herdsmen On A Deadly Mission - Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust
4 Oct 2017 — Similarly, the international community remains silent in relation to the violence in the Middle Belt region, while only focusing on Boko Haram in Northern Niger...
Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust (HART)
M’Belt Forum Demands UN Inquiry Over Alleged Genocide
Plateau killing: m'belt Forum demands un inquiry over alleged genocide
The Whistler Newspaper
Ombatse: Disenfranchisement and Violence in Nigeria’s Middle Belt
21 Aug 2013 — Our forefathers had their own way of worship... Now, what led to us to bring back this traditional worship is the complaints we receive from our people about th...
Photo Credit: Humangleedia
https://humanglemedia.com/more-pictures-from-nigerias-middle-belt-crisis-have-surfaced-some-are-misleading/
https://humanglemedia.com/more-pictures-from-nigerias-middle-belt-crisis-have-surfaced-some-are-misleading/
