A deadly ambush by suspected armed herdsmen in Benue State has left two police officers dead and several others injured after an attack targeted a Divisional Police Officer (DPO) and his patrol team.
The violent encounter occurred along a rural transit route in the Ukum Local Government Area of Benue State. The patrol team, led directly by the area’s Divisional Police Officer, was conducting a routine security sweep following recent reports of armed banditry and community displacements.
According to preliminary reports, gunmen concealed in dense roadside vegetation opened fire on the police convoy without warning. The officers engaged the attackers in a high-powered gun battle, but two personnel sustained fatal gunshot wounds during the initial tactical barrage.
"Our officers fought gallantly to repel the attack and protect the leadership of the team, but tragically, two of our brave men paid the ultimate price in the line of duty," stated a senior police representative from the command.
Reinforcements from the State Police Command and tactical units were swiftly deployed to the area to track down the assailants, who fled deeper into surrounding forests following the engagement. Emergency medical teams evacuated the injured officers to a nearby general hospital, where they remain under close medical observation.
The attack highlights the escalating security challenges in Benue State, where longstanding conflicts between local farming communities and armed nomadic herdsmen have turned increasingly violent. Local leaders have repeatedly raised alarms over organized militia ambushes along major rural roads, urging federal security forces to establish permanent forward operating bases to safeguard both civilians and law enforcement personnel.
In response to the tragic ambush, Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia strongly condemned the breach of peace, reassuring residents that government security agencies are mobilizing all necessary resources to apprehend the perpetrators. State officials announced plans to intensify joint security operations across vulnerable transit routes in Ukum and neighboring local government areas, aiming to dismantle criminal hideouts and restore stability to the beleaguered agrarian communities. Meanwhile, community elders have called for urgent federal intervention to break the cycle of violence, warning that unprovoked attacks on law enforcement officers severely jeopardize local agricultural activities and drive further displacement.
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