…CAN says its systematic Christian genocide, seeks for Int’l intervention
DANIEL DAUDA, Jos
No fewer than seven (7) persons were killed in Bum community, Chugwi, Vwang District of Jos South local government area of Plateau State, following a deadly attack by suspected armed Fulani militia barely an hour to new year 2026.
Daily Champion gathered that the assailants invaded the Bum community at about 11:00pm on 31st December, 2025, and unleashed terror as peace-loving residents were preparing to bid farewell to 2025 and welcome 2026.
A statement signed and issued to Daily Champion in Jos on Thursday by Rwang Tengwong, the National Publicity Secretary Berom Youths Moulder-Association (BYM), also confirmed that 7 corpses were recovered as search is still ongoing.
According to him, “at the moment seven (7) corpses have been recovered, while search and rescue efforts are still ongoing, raising fears that the casualty figure may rise.”
He further revealed that according to local sources, “the tragic incident came despite an earlier security alert warning that several communities in Jos South LGA had been earmarked for possible attacks.
Sadly, Bum community has now fallen victim to this renewed wave of violence.
“This latest attack adds to the growing list of violent assaults on innocent rural communities in Plateau State, further deepening concerns over the safety of lives and property, especially during festive periods meant for peace and celebration.
“The Berom Youths Moulder-Association (BYM) is closely monitoring developments and will provide further updates as the situation unfolds”, he stated.
In similar circumstances, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Plateau State chapter, alongside a coalition of indigenous youth bodies in the state, has accused the Nigerian government of presiding over what it described as a systematic genocide against Christian communities, particularly in the North and Middle Belt regions.
They called for immediate international intervention to halt the violence.
The allegation was made on Wednesday, December 31, 2025, in Jos,during a joint press conference addressed by the Chairman of the Ropp Regional Church Council of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN), Rev. Ezekiel Dachomo.
Dachomi, said the scale, pattern, and persistence of attacks could no longer be described as communal conflict.
Presenting what he tagged, as overwhelming evidence, Dachomo said the claims were backed by extensive documentation circulated to journalists, including annexures containing victim lists, community records, photographs, maps, and official reports compiled over several years.
He said:”I stand before you today to present overwhelming evidence of a systematic genocide against Christian communities in Nigeria especially in the Northern and Middle Belt regions which is speedily creeping into the Southern part of Nigeria.
“The harrowing testimony I am presenting to you is based on firsthand experience and extensive documentation as seen in the documents that I have circulated to you including the annexures which are graphic.
“This statement is supported by a vast archive of evidence—community records, victim lists, photographic documentation, and official reports—which we have compiled and refer to today.
These annexures are not mere paper; they are the testament of the fallen and the displaced.”
He said his advocacy was shaped by personal loss and repeated exposure to the aftermath of attacks on Christian communities.
“I stand before you today not only as a pastor, but as a witness. I have buried the murdered. I have cried as a person because I have lost my brethren, my blood relatives and even my best friend.
I have walked through burned villages and held services in burned churches with faith that the IDPs will return home only for the killer invaders to thereafter occupy those villages.”
Calling for urgent global action, Dachomo said the objective of the press conference was to compel international intervention, noting that Nigeria is a signatory to international conventions on genocide.
“This is not a communal conflict. And what I have seen happen is not a conflict. It is not a clash between farmers and herders. It is a systematic, organized campaign to wipe out Christians from their ancestral lands.
This is genocide! This is genocide!! This is genocide!!!”
According to CAN’s records, at least 1,336 Christians were killed in Plateau State alone between December 2023 and February 2024. Dachomo said the figure did not capture the full scale of the violence, citing continued attacks.
“Our villages are being emptied, renamed, and occupied by those who kill us and government is doing nothing about it. Our churches and schools are burned to the ground. Our pastors are assassinated.
“The Nigerian government no longer has the monopoly of violence but now shares this exclusive preserve with non-State actors some of whom are not Nigerians.
And when we protect ourselves, we are arrested, prosecuted in Court and convicted as seen in the case of Sunday Jackson in Adamawa State.”
While acknowledging that the Adamawa State Governor has since granted Jackson a pardon following global advocacy, the groups said the case remained emblematic of systemic injustice against Christian victims.
Rejecting the official description of the violence as farmer–herder clashes, Dachomo said CAN’s documentation showed a clear pattern of one-sided attacks on Christian-majority communities.
“Documented evidence shows that thousands of Christians have been murdered in targeted attacks.
Attacks are launched against specific, predominantly Christian communities. Not a single Muslim settlement has been recorded as attacked.”
The groups warned that continued silence could lead to catastrophic consequences and called on the Nigerian government and the international community to formally acknowledge that genocide was occurring within Nigeria’s borders.
“We do not seek revenge. We seek justice. We seek protection. We seek the right to exist, to worship, and to live in peace on the land of our ancestors.” Dachomo emphasized.
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