How Nigerian Media Downplays Genocide Against Christians in the Middle Belt

Photo by Voice TV Nigeria

(Abuja) A Fulani militant, speaking in Fulfulde and filmed outdoors, has openly claimed responsibility for a series of massacres in Nigeria’s Benue and Plateau.A July 2025 YouTube video shows the Fulani militant confessing in Hausa, claiming responsibility for killings in Yelewata, Benue, and Plateau, and threatening further attacks until locals “surrender.”“We are responsible for what happened in Yelewata and other parts of Benue and even in Plateau. Benue is part of Nigeria, and since we are in the same country with Benue people, they should accommodate us — or they will not live in peace,” the militant declared.“We shall continue to attack and pillage their lands until they surrender. In fact, what happened in Yelewata is just child’s play —others will follow.”The statement referenced recent killings in Yelewata, Otobi Akpa, Emichi, and other communities in Benue State.Such videos and many statements from Fulani sociocultural groups are shown every time there are attacks on communities in Benue, Plateau, Taraba, Southern Kaduna and parts of Nasarawa states.

Media Coverage Avoids the “Terrorist” Label

Despite explicit threats in widely shared videos, despite the huge loss of lives and damages done by the terrorists, Nigerian mainstream media  (NMM) typically  avoid labeling the perpetrators as “terrorists,” or calling them by their ethnicity, often using euphemisms such  “herdsmen,” “bandits,” or “armed men.”On June 15 after the deadly Yelewata massacre, TVC, a television station owned by the current President of Nigeria, Bola Tinubu, refers to the killers as “herdsmen” instead of calling them Fulani terrorists or  Fulani Ethnic Militia (FEM).Following a deadly attack on Yelewata after 270 Christians were killed in Yelewata by Fulani terrorists, Daily Post carried the news of the attack but called the perpetrators “gunmen.”Another Daily Post Nigeria, August 11, 2025 — report on Yelewata attack; attackers called only “gunmen,” avoiding Fulani identification.Mike Alidu Magaji, National President of the Idoma Youth Forum (umbrella body of Idoma people), explained:

“For example, in a Daily Post Nigeria feature story on the Yelewata massacre, attackers were consistently described as ‘herdsmen’ or ‘suspected armed herdsmen.’ The report never explicitly called them Fulani or used the terms ‘Fulani terrorists.’”Magaji said that this trend reflects a broader pattern of avoiding ethnic identifiers to sidestep political pressure or accusations of profiling.“Since the Yelewata attack, which left over 200 people dead, there have been more than five reported attacks on many counties in Benue, all described as the work of “bandits” or “gunmen” rather than Fulani militants,” he told TruthNigeria.The euphemistic coverup is all over Channels TV as well.Friday Agbo, Director of Alterconsult Thinktank, added that Daily Trust, and other major Nigerian media outlets, including Channels TV and Arise TV, have also referred to the perpetrators as “suspected herdsmen” without specifying their ethnic identity.

Bandits vs. Terrorists

Magaji explained the difference between bandits and terrorists:“Bandits are more motivated by economic realities. They kidnap, and after payment of ransom, they release their victims. However, terrorists kidnap, kill, grab lands, and spread fear.”“In fact, terrorists engage in massive killings and ethnic cleansing, which is deliberate, but the media prefer to call these terrorists ‘bandits.’ These are terrorists by every definition because their goal is not ransom but extermination and occupation,” Magaji said. “Fulani militants targeting Benue and Plateau communities are acting as terrorists, not bandits, because their attacks are deliberate, large-scale, and intended to dominate or eliminate local populations,” Magaji went on to say.

Governors Confirm Fulanis Behind Terror Attacks, But Reporters Ignore Them

Attempts by the media to downplay these acts of terrorism and to blur their identities have been exposed by Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia and Caleb Mutfwang of Benue and Plateau States respectively.Alia confirmed that the recent violence in his state goes beyond the usual farmer-herder clashes. In other words, Fulani terrorists are wreaking havoc on his state. “Fifty-nine persons at Yelewata, where suspected herdsmen from Nasarawa State attacked the border town, were killed. Benue is under attack by terrorists. The crisis has gone past farmer-herder conflict,” Alia said on June 16, two days after the Yelewata atrocity.  “We are under siege. It is directed; it is planned and executed. It is some terrorism that is eating us up,” Alia tells Channels.Similarly, Plateau State Governor Caleb Mutfwang, attempts to school media on August 2025, highlighting the organized nature of the attacks:“There are not less than 64 communities that have been taken over by bandits… They have been taken over, renamed, and people are living there conveniently on lands they pushed people away to occupy. I cannot find any explanation other than genocide sponsored by terrorists.”

American Reporter Pulls Back the Nigerian Curtain

American journalist Lara Logan pulled no punches at a press conference at the National Press Club on July 27.  “Yelewata is not an isolated incident. It is a coordinated assault that has already claimed thousands of lives, displaced millions, and left countless women and children subjected to abduction, rape, and abuse,” Logan told the conference.Entire communities are being destroyed, homes burned, and cultural identities erased. Logan warns:“The human cost is staggering. This is strategic, deliberate, and cannot be dismissed as mere communal conflict. Immediate international action is required, because inaction comes at the cost of human lives and a stolen future for Nigeria’s Christians.”

Luka Binniyat and Mike Odeh James are conflict reporters for TruthNigeria.

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