2023 Plateau State massacres

Between 23 and 25 December 2023, a series of armed attacks occurred across Plateau State in central Nigeria, affecting at least 17 rural communities in the local government areas of Bokkos and Barkin Ladi. The attacks resulted in at least 200 deaths, injuries to more than 500 people, and significant property damage. No group claimed responsibility, though the violence is believed to have been carried out by Fulani militias.

Plateau State lies in Nigeria's Middle Belt and has a long history of ethnic and religious conflict, primarily between Muslim Fulani herders and Christian farmers. This conflict dates to 2011 and stems from disputes over land ownership and grazing rights. Contributing factors cited include Nigeria's high fertility rate, a large youth population facing unemployment and underemployment, and the effects of climate change and agricultural expansion on land pressures. Similar attacks had previously occurred in the region in April 2022 and May 2023.

Miyetti Allah (MACBAN), an advocacy group representing Fulani interests, accused state security personnel of colluding with farmers to attack Fulani herders. The group's state chairman, Muhammed Nuru Abdullahi, claimed the violence began with a failed act of cattle rustling against Fulani herders on 23 December, in which three cattle breeders were killed and the theft of 181 cows was attempted, and that 130 houses were burned in several Fulani villages the following day. He called for the federal government to establish ranches in Plateau State and other states to help end the recurring clashes.

During the attacks, assailants using guns and machetes burned houses and other property across the affected communities. Since 2014, attacks on Hausa farmers in the region have been attributed to semi-nomadic Fulani herders, who have long said that farmers are encroaching on grazing lands essential to their livelihoods.

In the aftermath, the Nigerian Army launched "clearance operations" to locate suspects. Some victims reported that security forces took more than twelve hours to respond after the attacks began. The violence prompted widespread outrage, with residents demanding justice and government protection. Plateau State Governor Caleb Mutfwang condemned the violence, though his response drew criticism, and Amnesty International called for an independent investigation. The United Nations, African Union, European Union, and United States all issued statements of condemnation and offered support.

Following the attacks, photographs from the 2022 Owo church attack were circulated on social media with miscaptioned labels falsely suggesting they depicted the Plateau State massacres. On 8 January 2024, approximately 5,000 Nigerian Christians rallied in Jos, the state capital, to protest ongoing insecurity, gathering outside the local governor's office to call for peace. Governor Mutfwang reiterated his commitment to bringing the perpetrators to justice. As of the available reporting, no individuals or groups had been identified, charged, or convicted in connection with the attacks.