BREAKING: Nasarawa boils as Ombatse, Alago youth clash

Palpable tension has enveloped Lafia, the
Nasarawa state capital, and environs,
following a clash between Eggon youths
suspected to be Ombatse militia and
Alago youths in Obi local government
area of the state.
Odobu, a village few kilometers to Obi
town, mainly inhabited by the Alago tribe,
has been razed down while the
inhabitants have all fled to unknown
destination.
Although the immediate cause of the
crisis is yet to be ascertained, community
sources claimed the clash started as a
result of resistance by the Eggon youth to
the arrest of their colleagues by security
operatives after a tipoff by Alago youths
who suspected the movement of the
Eggons from Lafia east to Obi town about
40 kilometers away.
Witnesses say despite effort to check the
crisis by the police, the youths had a field
day as they spent almost three hours
burning houses and properties.
One of the victims, who asked not to be
named for security reasons, told
PREMIUM TIMES he escaped death by the
whiskers.
“I managed to escape narrowly,” he said.
“As I am speaking to you Odobu
community has been completely
destroyed and as at the time I was
scampering to safety, the angry looking
youths were heading towards Obi main
town having razed down Odobu.”.
When contacted, the state Police
Commissioner, Umar Shehu, confirmed
the incident saying he had deployed his
men to the area to halt the violenc.
He however declined to provide casualty
figures saying “for now I cannot confirm
any casualty figure until my men return”.
A PREMIUM TIMES reporter, who visited
some nearby communities, said that there
was palpable tension as some of the
residents, mostly women and children
were seen fleeing their homes in droves.
At the time of filling this report, the state’s
deputy governor, Damishi Barau Luka, is
presiding over a hurriedly convened
security meeting in his office in Lafia.