As military personnel reportedly overran some communities in Benue State youths have taken to the streets in protest amid cries by residents of affected communities.
On Monday, operatives of Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS) set up to contain violent crimes in Benue, Nasarawa and Taraba states, reportedly invaded several communities in Konshisha council area of Benue State.
A military source speaking anonymously justified the invasion, saying a soldier was missing in the area when operatives were deployed there to enforce peace between the Tiv and Igede communities constantly clashing over land.
It was claimed that the OPWS men fell into an ambush by local militia, resulting in the disappearance of the soldier.
Many residents were displaced as houses were razed.
Shangev Tiev youths staged a peaceful protest in Gboko, a Tiv heartland.
Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom and his counterparts from Rivers, Sokoto and Nassarawa, in Gboko to inaugurate road projects and the upgraded Tor Tiv palace, were greeted with placards demanding justice in the invasion.
At press time houses were reportedly being burnt by military men said to be searching for the militiamen who attacked soldiers.
The military on Thursday said it lost 10 soldiers and an officer in an ambush in the area.
A lawyer, Samson Luga, who hails from Shangev Tiev, urged the military authorities to call their men to order.
Governor Ortom has condemned the attack on military men and appealed to communities not to use militias to settle their squabbles.
Ortom also promised that his administration would do everything lawful to ensure peace among the warring Tiv and Igede communities.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state also urged the military to exercise caution in their operation, and not attack the innocent while chasing the abductors of their missing man.
