This weekly update spotlights gang violence in the Niger Delta with a focus on clashes between cult gangs in Rivers State. According to data (see map above), over 200 cult and gang related fatalities were reported in Rivers State between January 2020 and December 2022. Recent incidents indicate a resurgence of cult and gang related killings in the State, driven mainly by battle for supremacy and territorial control among rival cult gangs. Since January 2023, more than 10 persons have been killed in a series of cult clashes in the State. In January 2023, for instance, an elderly man was reportedly burned to dead in a reprisal attack by members of a cult gang in Diobu community, Port Harcourt LGA. Separately, the leader of a cult gang was reportedly killed by members of a rival group in Diobu community. In February, members of a cult gang reportedly kidnapped a woman and raped her to death in Abarikpo community, Ahoada East LGA. More recently, on February 14, 2023, nine persons were reportedly shot dead during a clash over a leadership tussle between two factions of a cult gang in Ikata community, Ahoada East LGA.
The post Niger Delta Weekly Conflict Update for February 19-25, 2023 appeared first on PIND Foundation.
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