Target List Exposed — Pastor Among Dead

Armed militants hunted down Christians by name inside their own homes in a Nigerian village — and soldiers didn’t arrive until two hours after the killing was done.

Story Snapshot

Suspected Fulani militants attacked Kawel village in Plateau State, Nigeria on June 22, 2026, killing dozens of Christians in a two-hour assault.
Attackers spoke Fulani and Hausa languages and called out Christian leaders by name, directing militants to hunt them in their homes.
A pastor and a retired army officer were among those killed, pointing to deliberate targeting of community leaders.
Nigerian soldiers arrived two hours after the attack began, raising serious questions about the military’s response time.

Militants Hunt Christians by Name in Overnight Attack

Armed militants stormed Kawel village in Bokkos County, Plateau State, in the early hours of June 22, 2026. Survivors say the attackers swept through the village for nearly two hours. Witness Jesse Peter Dukut told Christian Daily International that attackers spoke Fulani and Hausa and called out the names of Christian leaders. They directed other militants to find those leaders in their homes and kill them.

Among the dead was Pastor Markus Nyam and a retired army officer — both seen as pillars of the community. Reports differ on the exact death toll. Christian Daily puts the number at 28, while other sources range from 22 to 31. ^[4] Attackers also hit a police post and a government health clinic before spreading through the village, suggesting a planned, coordinated strike rather than a random act of violence. ^[1]

A Region With a Long and Bloody History

Plateau State has suffered wave after wave of deadly violence for decades. Since 1999, an estimated 13,500 people have been killed in intercommunal violence there, according to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. ^[13] In 2025 alone, at least 120 Christians were killed in Plateau State. ^[11] Attacks often happen during Christian holy days, and local leaders say the pattern of coordinated raids is growing worse, not better.

Joseph Lengmang, a former director of the Plateau Peace Building Agency, told local media that the nature of the Kawel attack suggests either a link between Fulani ethnic militias and insurgent groups — or that those militias are shifting to insurgent-style tactics. ^[1] Human rights groups have long documented a pattern of churches burned, pastors killed, and villages emptied across Nigeria’s Middle Belt region. ^[16]

Nigerian Government Silent as World Looks Away

No Nigerian president or minister has issued a formal statement calling the Kawel attack a targeted massacre of Christians. That silence is not new. Nigerian state media and government officials routinely label similar attacks as “communal clashes” or “farmer-herder conflicts,” avoiding any mention of religious targeting. Critics say this framing protects no one and emboldens the killers. Meanwhile, social media platforms have been known to flag or remove content that uses terms like “Islamic militants” — making it harder for survivors’ stories to reach the world.

🚨 Another massacre of Christians in Nigeria and the world stays silent.

Muslim Gunmen stormed Kawel village in Plateau State’s Bokkos area, slaughtering at least 20-30+ Christians in their homes and even a health center.

Families wiped out. Farmers, women, children, the… pic.twitter.com/Dq3iD1jLRT

— Donna Louise (@DonnaLouise1212) June 25, 2026

No arrests have been made in connection with the Kawel attack. No named suspects have been publicly identified by Nigerian police. ^[2] The world’s response has been largely silence. For the Christians of Plateau State, that silence is nothing new — but it is no less devastating. At least 120 Christians were killed in this same region in 2025 alone, and the killing continues with little accountability and even less international attention. ^[11]