Engr. Sale Alhassa Alhassan, Secretary-General of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, has alleged that Fulani herdsmen in Plateau State have endured severe and sustained attacks for over 25 years, describing the situation as genocide that has largely gone underreported.

Speaking at a sensitization program in Abuja on Saturday, Alhassan accused local media and Christian leaders, including Rev. Ezekiel Dachomo, of promoting what he termed a “phantom Christian genocide” while neglecting the repeated killings, displacements, and criminalization of Fulani pastoralists by local militias.

He claimed that violence against Fulani communities has also occurred in Benue, Zamfara, Kebbi, Nasarawa, Taraba, Adamawa, Southern Kaduna, Katsina, Sokoto, Niger, Kwara, Enugu, Ondo, and Anambra, citing cases taken to the ECOWAS Court and attacks by security forces that have seen limited accountability.

Alhassan argued that while some herders may be involved in conflicts, the broader narrative wrongly portrays pastoralists as aggressors, ignoring evidence that many attacks are perpetrated by local communities. He called for a comprehensive security approach to identify all perpetrators and criticized individuals he described as “genocide town criers” for using the conflict for personal gain and international attention.

“Portraying herders as killers is false,” he stated. “Yes, some herders may be involved, but the way the conflict is being presented is not the truth.”