The attack happened in the Otukpo area of Benue State, where armed Attackers entered  the community without warning, according to Otukpo Local Government Council Chairman Maxwell Ogiri. The injured were taken for treatment as security agencies responded to the scene.

Ogiri blamed the assault on Fulani militia, saying similar attacks had also been reported in neighboring communities in recent days, raising fears of worsening insecurity across the area.

The latest killings add to years of violence that have made Benue one of Nigeria's deadliest conflict hotspots. The state has repeatedly witnessed clashes between farming communities and cattle herders over access to land and natural resources.

The conflict often erupts after cattle destroy farmland, triggering retaliatory attacks by farmers, followed by revenge assaults on villages by armed herders. 

Hundreds of people have been killed in the violence in recent years, with thousands displaced from their homes.

Fulani herders, who are mostly nomadic and come from northern Nigeria, have frequently been accused of carrying out attacks in farming communities. However, Fulani associations have consistently denied involvement in such incidents. No group had claimed responsibility for Tuesday's attack.

Benue State Police spokesperson Udeme Edet said security personnel had been deployed to the affected community, adding that an investigation into the attack was underway.