Lagos - Fulani herdsmen killed at least five villagers in northern Nigeria's Kaduna state in the latest violence over grazing rights, police said on Wednesday, but local media put the toll higher.
State police spokesperson Aliyu Usman said: "There was an attack on several communities in the state on Tuesday. Five people lost their lives and we are investigating the incident."
He said police had been deployed to restore peace.
"Our men are on the ground. The place is now calm."
Local media said at least 11 people were killed when Fulani herders invaded the Ungwan Anjo, Akwaa and Gida Biyu villages in Jema'a local government area of the state, while several houses and farmlands were destroyed.
Creation of grazing land
The media also said 15 people were killed in another attack in the Demsa council area of Adamawa state about 250km from Kaduna at the weekend.
Clashes over grazing rights are common between Muslim Fulani herders and largely Christian farmers in Nigeria, particularly in the religiously mixed central states.
One person was killed, one went missing and two were injured in an attack in the Benue state last week where hundreds were reportedly killed in February.
President Muhammadu Buhari, a northern Muslim, has proposed the creation of grazing land to prevent further clashes in a country that is battling a seven-year Boko Haram insurgency in the northeast.
