AKIPRESS.COM - Eighty-six people have been killed in attacks by suspected nomadic herders against farming communities in restive central Nigeria, police have said.

Sunday’s discovery in the Barkin Ladi area of Plateau state came after days of violence apparently sparked by an attack by ethnic Berom farmers on Fulani herders on Thursday, The Guardian reported.

The state police commissioner, Undie Adie, said a search of Berom villages in the area following clashes on Saturday found 86 people had been killed.

Adie told reporters six people were also injured and 50 houses razed. Bodies of those who died have been released to their families, he added.

The deaths are the latest in a long-running battle for land and resources that is putting Nigeria’s president, Muhammadu Buhari, under pressure as elections approach next year.