Survivor of Nigeria’s Yelwata Massacre Recounts Loss of Five Children Before U.S. Congress

By Emmanuel Kwada

In a testimony that left lawmakers visibly moved, Msurshima Apeh, a survivor of the brutal Yelwata massacre in Nigeria’s Benue State, delivered an emotional account to the U.S. House Subcommittee on Africa on Thursday, detailing how she watched helplessly as armed assailants slaughtered her five young children during a nighttime raid five months ago.

Apeh, speaking virtually from a displacement camp in Benue, described the horrors of the June 13-14, 2025, attack on the Yelwata community in Guma Local Government Area, where suspected Fulani herdsmen stormed a shelter housing hundreds of already displaced Christian families.

“When we went to sleep that night around 9 p.m., the Fulani terrorists attacked us where we were sleeping. We were locked inside the camp… and they were butchering them with cutlasses and shooting guns as well,” Apeh recounted, her voice breaking as she relived the chaos.

The assault, which lasted over two hours, claimed an estimated 100 to 200 lives—primarily women and children—and displaced more than 3,000 residents, many of whom fled to camps in neighboring Nasarawa State.

Civil rights groups, including Amnesty International, have disputed official figures, suggesting the death toll could be as high as 300, including five security personnel killed in the fray.

Attackers reportedly arrived under cover of darkness, armed with sophisticated weapons, and systematically set fire to homes and shelters after the initial onslaught, pouring petrol on buildings to ensure no survivors.

Apeh, who had already been uprooted from her home due to prior farmer-herder clashes, climbed a tree to escape the inferno, forced to witness the unimaginable from above. “When the torture had finished… they poured petrol on the building and the majority of them were set ablaze,” she told the subcommittee.

“I was on the tree while my five children were being slaughtered by terrorists,” she added, a phrase that echoed through social media posts amplifying her story across Nigeria and beyond. Her children, ranging in age from toddlers to preteens, were among the dozens hacked or burned alive that night.

The hearing, focused on religious persecution and President Donald Trump’s decision to reinstate Nigeria on the U.S. State Department’s “Country of Particular Concern” list for severe violations of religious freedom, underscored the escalating violence in Nigeria’s Middle Belt.

Apeh’s testimony built on earlier warnings from figures like Bishop Wilfred Anagbe, who had alerted Congress months prior to a “systematic campaign to erase Christian communities.” U.S. lawmakers, including Subcommittee Chair Rep. Maria Salazar (R-Fla.), expressed outrage at the Nigerian government’s perceived inaction, with some calling for targeted sanctions on perpetrators and stronger diplomatic pressure on Abuja.

The Yelwata attack is part of a broader pattern of violence in Benue State, often framed as clashes between predominantly Christian farmers and Muslim Fulani herders over scarce resources, though survivors and human rights advocates describe it as targeted ethnic and religious cleansing. Prior warnings from U.S.-based group Truth Nigeria, which notified Nigerian authorities—including the military and Department of State Services—three weeks and one day before the raid, went unheeded, according to the organization’s founder.

Since the massacre, at least 500 more Christians have reportedly been killed in follow-up incidents, with little media coverage outside local outlets.

In the immediate aftermath, Nigerian President Bola Tinubu visited Benue, promising aid and justice, while Inspector-General of Police Kayode Egbetokun announced the arrest of 26 suspects and the deployment of additional forces.

The Vatican also condemned the “terrible massacre,” with Pope Leo XIV praying for “security, justice, and peace” for Benue’s rural Christian communities. Yet, as Apeh noted in her testimony, “We are being driven from the land,” highlighting the ongoing displacement and impunity fueling the cycle of violence.

Human Rights Watch has urged Nigerian authorities to prioritize security in vulnerable areas, warning that without accountability, such atrocities will persist. Apeh’s plea to Congress ended on a note of desperate hope: “I need justice for my children… and protection for those still alive.”

The subcommittee has yet to announce specific recommendations, but advocates say Apeh’s voice could galvanize U.S. policy shifts, including aid restrictions tied to human rights reforms. As one X user posted in reaction to clips of her testimony, “This is not just a story—it’s a cry for the world to wake up.”