the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has confirmed that eight people have been killed in a recent communal clash between the Alesi community in Ikom Local Government Area and their neighbours, the Ochon community in Obubra Local Government Area of Cross River State.
Four people have been injured, while more than 2,008 people have been displaced, the agency said.
Godwin Tepikor, NEMA’s South-South zonal coordinator, made the confirmation during an on-the-ground assessment of the community crisis in both communities on Saturday.
Mr. Tepikor said that the crisis that occurred on March 7, 2022 erupted as a result of a land dispute between the two neighboring communities.
He told the Nigerian News Agency (NAN) on the sidelines of the assessment that no fewer than 2,008 people were affected and had been displaced from their ancestral homes.
“The crisis that erupted between the Ochon and Alesi communities in the Obubra and Ikom local government areas claimed the lives of eight people, four were injured on both sides, and more than 2,008 displaced.
“Several buildings and domestic properties were destroyed in the process.
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“The affected people were scattered among neighboring communities within the local government areas of the state,” he said.
NAN reported that Nigerian Army officials and members of the affected communities accompanied the NEMA team during the assessment tour.
(YAYA)