The American Veterans of Igbo Descent (AVID) has vehemently condemned the massacre of over 200 persons in Benue State by Fulani herders, saying that the federal government was pampering the real terrorists while being fixated with the continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu.
The United States of America (USA) based group also noted that the continued detention of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu has paved the way for the armed Fulani herders to be having a field day perpetrating “genocide in slow motion”.
In a statement signed by the President of AVID, Dr Sylvester Onyia, made available to the media Tuesday, the group said that with Kanu out of the way the herders have been emboldened to continue perpetrating “widespread atrocities” – killing, maiming and displacing people from their ancestral homes.
Nigerians had woken up in the morning of Saturday June 14, 2025 to the disturbing news that heavily armed jihadists, disguised as herders had at about 11pm on Friday stormed Yelwata, a farming community in Guma Local Government of Benue State, killed dozens and razed their homes.
AVID called on the international community, human rights organizations, and global democratic institutions to take notice of the ongoing atrocities occurring in Benue State and other indigenous regions of Nigeria.
It stated that the extra-judicial rendition of Kanu, “a British citizen and prominent voice for indigenous self-determination from Kenya in 2021 in clear violation of international law” has weakened resistance of indigenous peoples against armed herders.
The military veterans pointed out that there was more than meets the eyes in the continued detention of the IPOB leader despite multiple court orders for his release, adding that “it is not a matter of legal oversight”.
According to the group, Kanu’s travails “is part of a broader, chilling plan to silence resistance against armed Fulani expansionism and enable the violent subjugation of indigenous communities”.
“The latest mass killings in Benue State in Nigeria, have exposed the cost of silencing voices of truth. Mazi Kanu consistently warned of this impending horror – the planned domination of indigenous lands through state-sponsored terror disguised as herdsmen attacks,” AVID said.
It regretted that Kanu’s “prophetic warnings were ignored. Instead, he was labeled a terrorist, while the actual perpetrators of terror are emboldened by the Nigerian state”.
AVID raised some posers, saying that “the world must now ask why “a peaceful advocate of self-determination in prison while Fulani militants roam free”.
It also demaned explanations as to “why the Nigerian government is more focused on crushing dissent than protecting lives”, and the role “the silence of international actors has played in enabling this genocide-by-default”
AVID, therefore, urgently called on the United Nations, African Union, and ECOWAS “to demand Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s immediate and unconditional release”.
While urging the UK Government “to act decisively in defense of its citizen whose fundamental rights have been flagrantly violated”, the military veterans also called on the international media “to hold the Nigerian government accountable for enabling ethnic cleansing while suppressing dissent”.
“Nnamdi Kanu’s continued detention is the green light for more massacres. The world must not stay silent,” AVID, said.
