NEWS: BOKO HARAM KILLS 60 IN FRESH BORNO ATTACKS

 

As violence continues unabated in Borno State, gunmen suspected to be members of the Boko Haram  sect members in over two dozen Toyota Hilux vehicles and motorcycles laden with explosives, attacked Damboa town, killing over 60 residents, including a local politician in the early hours of yesterday.
   The gunmen, according to a member of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) who preferred anonymity, also torched several houses, shops and the Damboa central market with explosives, in the midnight and dawn multiple attacks.
   Damboa is on the fringe of Sambisa Forest and 87 kilometres south of Maiduguri, the state capital.
    Friday’s attacks and killings occurred two weeks after the council headquarters was attacked by suspected Boko Haram insurgents who killed several people, including soldiers and policemen attached to 195 Military Battalion and Divisional Police Station.
    Military and Police sources said: “This morning, scores of people
have been killed following a deadly midnight and dawn multiple attacks on residents in Damboa by Boko Haram gunmen; who had a field
day in this town. We alsolearnt that an Air Force
fighter jet assisted in repelling the attackers, as many of the terrorists might have lost their lives in the attacks.”
   According to an official of CJTF who spoke to some his members in Damboa, the gunmen burst into the town by 6pm and operated up to 5am yesterday.
    He said a handful members of a vigilante group and other Vigilante officials were available in Damboa to complement the efforts of the
security forces.
    “The number of people who died could be very high because my contacts in Damboa said they are still picking and piling the corpses. Many houses, nearly half of what remains of the town, have been razed,” said a
vigilante youth.
    All efforts to get confirmation from the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Gideon Jubrin proved abortive, but a top security personnel who is not authorized to speak to the press, confirmed the
incident. He however said he is not in a position to give the number of casualties, but noted that many people, including terrorists were killed, while many houses and other public buildings were set ablaze.
   On whether there was security before Friday’s attacks, he said only
a handful of  Civilian-JTF members and a few vigilante officials were available in Damboa to protect the people following the desertion of the town by soldiers since the attack on security formations there about two weeks ago.
    The Guardian also learnt that attempts by soldiers to return to Damboa military base failed as the Boko Haram gunmen took over the highway
and continued to engage soldiers in ambush attack that forced them to return to Maiduguri on two occasions. Source The Guardian Newspaper