The Benue State Catholic community has been thrown into mourning following the killing of two priests, two catechists and about 14 lay faithful of the church by suspected Fulani herdsmen in Ayar community of Gwer-East Local Government Area in the state.
The slain priests, Revd. Frs. Joseph Gor and Felix Tyolaha and the other victims were reportedly butchered to death in the early hours of Tuesday by the suspected herdsmen who attacked them while they were at morning Mass in a local church in the community.
A large crowd of Catholic faithful gathered at the Bishop Murray Medical Centre, Makurdi on Tuesday morning to witness the depositing of the remains of slain priests in the mortuary of Bishop Murray Medical Centre, Makurdi .
The scene elicited much much wailing and sorrow from the crowd of mourners.
Some of the locals who had escaped and fled to Makurdi, and were among the crowd at the hospital corroborated the attack.
The killing has exacerbated the anger in the state regarding the murderous activities of the herdsmen which has continued in Benue for some months now.
In February, more than 70 Benue indigenes were killed in their sleep by the herdsmen who were later accorded mass burial.