The House of Representatives has mandated a Joint Committee to investigate the alleged killing of over 53 people in Plateau State by men said to be officers of the Nigerian Army.

In a plenary session that was marked with periods of power outages, the House also urged the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to provide necessary relief materials.

The House also urged NEMA to conduct a damage assessment exercise in the affected areas.

The Senate had earlier this week, also directed its Committee on Defence to investigate the attack on communities in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area Plateau State.

Sen. Victor Lar, during plenary noted that gunmen, dressed in military uniform, stormed five villages in Plateau State over the weekend and killed about 50 people and injured over 100.

“Their operations tended to imply that they are not genuine Nigerian army personnel because they used machetes to hack down people and they shot at and killed women and children.

“They killed uniformed policemen and civil defence personnel; they burnt down every house within reach and they used petrol to burn the bodies of the victims that they killed”, he said.

Sen. Lar said as a result of the attack, nearly 20, 000 people have been displaced and are now seeking refuge in Lantang North and South Local Government Areas of Plateau State.

Mr. Lar described the attack as a crime against humanity, adding that it has violated the provisions of the Geneva Convention.