No fewer than 19 people have been reportedly killed in a fresh cult clash in Obelle Community, Emohua Local Government Area of Rivers State.
The violence, which erupted on Sunday, has thrown the community into panic, forcing residents to flee for safety. This follows an earlier attack on Wednesday, where gunmen suspected to be cultists killed seven people.
It was gathered that the clash was between rival cult groups, Deybam and Icelanders, who reignited their long-standing supremacy battle after over two years of truce. Reports indicate that the group that suffered casualties on Wednesday launched a reprisal attack, targeting relatives of their perceived enemies.
A local resident, Kingsley, described the chaos: “On Sunday morning, cultists started shooting, attacking relatives of those they accused of being behind Wednesday’s killings. Shortly after, their rivals also retaliated, and many people, including innocent residents, lost their lives. We are begging the government to intervene before they destroy our community.”
Confirming the incident, the spokesperson of the Rivers State Police Command, Grace Iringe-Koko, linked the clash to a dispute over levies from an oil company operating in the area. She, however, put the official death toll at 10.
“It is a fight between loyalists of ‘Naked Wire’ and ‘Carol’ over control of levies from an oil company. So far, 10 people have been confirmed dead. No arrests yet, but investigations are ongoing,” she said.
Security agencies are expected to step up efforts to restore peace to the troubled community.