A group, International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety) says 5,068 Christians were killed and 3,000 others abducted in Nigeria in 2022.
It also said over 1,000 Christians were killed in the first three months of 2023 January to March.
Intersociety, based in Anambra State, South East Nigeria, stated this in a report released on Thursday April 13.
It said the figures were based on statistics from local and international media, religious, community, security, research, intergovernmental, non-governmental, international parliamentary organisations or diplomatic institutions.
Christian Post quoted Intersociety as saying that violence has been devastating in some northern states of Nigeria particularly Benue, Kaduna, Plateau, Taraba, Niger, Borno, Adamawa and Kebbi.
The group led by Emeka Umeagbalasi, a Christian Criminologist, said of the about 3000 killed this year, Benue State in the north central region, accounts for 380 deaths.
It also said that Jihadist Fulani herdsmen, Boko Haram, the Islamic State for West Africa Province(ISWAP) and the al-Qaeda affiliated Ansaru were involved in the violence and killings.
Intersociety said from January to October 2022, the radicalised Fulani herdsmen and their religious allies were responsible for the death of 2,650 Christians while ISWAP, Boko Haram and Ansaru killed 450.
The report also indicted the military attributing about 550 deaths in 2022 based on ethnic and religious profiling to the institution.
The group said over five million displaced people are in the Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp.
Intersociety said it “is emotionally dedicating this special investigative report to 1,041 slain and disappeared victims of the Jihadist Fulani Herdsmen and other Jihadist’ genocidal attacks carried out across Nigeria in the first 100 days of 2023.
“The under-listed slain and wounded victims also represent 5,068 other slain or caused to disappear without traces till date by Nigerians Jihadists in 2022.”
Previous reports
In its first report in 2022, Intersociety said over 4,000 Christians were killed in Nigeria in the first 10 months (January to October) of that year while about 2,000 other Christians were abducted within the same period.
In 2021, the group reported that 3,462 Christians were killed in the country in the first six months of that year and that 10 priests were among the victims while about 300 churches were either threatened, attacked, closed or destroyed within the period.