A heavily pregnant mother was forced to give birth in the middle of a deadly village attack in central Nigeria after gunfire and chaos caused her to go into labour from shock and trauma, according to Christian charity Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust (HART).
Blessing was expecting her second child when armed men on motorbikes stormed her community in Plateau State, shooting at residents and setting homes ablaze.
As panic spread and the residents ran for their lives, the extreme fear and physical strain reportedly triggered trauma-induced labour - a condition in which severe stress can cause the body to go into early delivery.
Speaking to a representative of HART, she said: “I begged my baby not to come.”
Carrying her three-year-old son, the mother fled into nearby bushland as bullets flew around her, and the shock of the assault caused her waters to break.
After escaping the immediate violence, she found refuge in a church close by, where one Nigerian soldier was said to be defending those sheltering inside from the attackers.
There, with gunfire still ringing out in the distance and no medical assistance available, the mother went into labour. Her mother-in-law helped deliver the baby on the church floor.
“It was far more painful than the birth of my first child. I felt like my bones were breaking,” she recalled, and despite the circumstances, she gave birth to a healthy daughter.
She later asked the soldier who had shielded them to choose the child’s name.
The baby is believed to be the youngest survivor of the attack, which killed 52 people.
HART says the Plateau mother’s story reflects the escalating insecurity facing communities in central Nigeria.
The Christian charity says over 700 villages in the region have been attacked since 2009, with an estimated 20,000 people killed.
It described the violence as causing “thousands of killings, countless injuries and displacement that is off the charts”.
Senior Programmes Manager for HART, Hassan John, said he had personally visited more than 150 villages either during or after attacks and “witnessed the most unspeakable atrocities”.
He added: “I can say categorically that none of these villages have received adequate security or humanitarian assistance from the Nigerian Government or elsewhere. Survivors are forced to rely on aid from local churches, small NGOs like HART, or they receive almost no aid at all,” he said.
Similarly, Chief Executive of HART, Sam Mason, said: “After 15 years of inter-communal violence, we’re now seeing a total collapse of human security in parts of Central Nigeria.”
Highlighting the plight of mothers in communities affected by the violence who are enduring severe trauma, and the displaced children who are increasingly vulnerable to “neglect and exploitation”, he said: “The Nigerian Government owes these communities a clear plan to stop the killings – with no more dither or delay.”
The account comes amid fresh reports of increasing violence against Christian communities across Nigeria.
The International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety) recently claimed that the lives of 1,402 Christians were taken in the first 96 days of 2026, between New Year’s Day and Easter Monday.
The group also reported that 1,800 Christians were abducted during the same period, with 180 of those abducted allegedly killed in captivity.
The report said violence intensified during Holy Week, with over 100 deaths reported, including 34 on Easter Sunday alone.
Recent incidents cited include the killing of at least 21 Christians in Chibok County in southern Borno State on March 30, and a Palm Sunday attack close to Jos in Plateau State, where reports said more than 40 Christians lost their lives.
Nigeria’s insecurity drew international attention in December 2025 when US President Donald Trump authorised airstrikes targeting what he described as “Terrorist Scum…who have been targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians”.
A recent Channel 4 documentary also explored allegations of a “Christian genocide” in Nigeria, with a focus on the worsening violence in central regions.
