India, April 7 -- At least 26 people have been killed in three separate Easter attacks in northern Nigeria, according to the Nigerian military and local officials.

At least 17 were killed on Saturday when armed men attacked the Mbalom community in the Gwer West area of Nigeria's north-central Benue State.

Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia confirmed the attacks on Sunday, but did not specify how many people were killed in the attack. Residents gave the figure of 17. Attacks like these are part of a long-running cycle of violence in north-central Nigeria, where disputes over land and grazing between mostly Muslim Fulani herders and largely Christian farming communities frequently escalate into deadly clashes. Criminal gangs are also acti...