Muslim Herders in Nigeria ‘Collaborate With the Al-Shabab’ Extremist Group, According To Christian Farmers
by Jordan Hilger, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – A Christian farmer in Nigeria was intimidated by Muslim herdsmen and his crops used for grazing in July, as the herder-farmer conflict in that country takes on a spiritual dimension.
Benson Karisa Shida, who had to leave his farm behind in 2017 when Al-Shabab militants displaced two hundred families near the Boni Forest, was surrounded by fifty Orma herders who beat him and demanded he allow their cattle to eat his crops.
“Lately, we have been having constant conflicts with them especially since they are Muslim nomadic herdsmen and we are Christian farmers engaged in crop production,” Shida told International Christian Concern.
The farmer related that, under the Katsaka Kairo settlement scheme that relocated his family, he is still able to travel to his farm from the refugee camp where he now lives to work his land during the day.
Another Christian farmer who similarly lost his lands in February explained to International Christian Concern that the Orma herders, who are predominantly Muslim, are collaborating with the Somali Islamist group Al-Shabab to eradicate the Christian presence from the region by appropriating the lands of Christian farmers.