Join our WhatsApp channel HERE for the latest Benue news and updates!
In a rare and high-profile diplomatic engagement, Benue State Governor Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia today received a powerful delegation from the United States comprising members of the U.S. Congress, the Assistant Secretary of State, and the U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria at Government House, Makurdi.
The closed-door meeting, described by the Governor as “very frank and productive,” centred on the deteriorating security and deepening humanitarian catastrophe across Benue and the wider North-Central region.
Speaking shortly after the session, Fr. Alia revealed that the American officials expressed grave concern over the endless cycle of herdsmen attacks, mass displacement, rising deaths, and the collapse of farming activities that have turned Benue into one of Nigeria’s largest internal refugee zones.
“They assured us that the United States is not only watching but is ready to support sustainable efforts toward peace, justice, and lasting security for our people,” the Governor posted on his verified page, adding that discussions also explored concrete pathways for humanitarian assistance, capacity building for security agencies, and international advocacy to end the bloodshed.
Sources close to Government House say the visit is part of a broader U.S. congressional interest in Nigeria’s worsening farmer-herder conflict, with Benue repeatedly cited in Washington as the epicentre of the crisis that has claimed thousands of lives and displaced over two million people in the last decade.
Tonight, the meeting has sparked cautious hope among civil society groups and victims’ associations who have long complained that the international community had remained largely silent. Many are now calling on the U.S. to move quickly from sympathy to targeted sanctions, intelligence support, and direct aid that reaches the camps and ravaged communities.
For a state that has buried too many and seen entire villages wiped out, today’s handshake in Makurdi feels like the first real flicker of global attention in years. Whether it translates into action remains the prayer on every Benue lip tonight.
