Boko Haram attacks army base in Borno state
- Five soldiers are injured while four are still missing, after a Boko Haram ambush on troops in Borno state
- The soldiers were reportedly attacked as their convoy was headed to the small town of Gulumba in the state
- The insurgents that launched the attacks were said to be from the Boko Haram faction headed by Abu Musab Al-Barnawi, son of the sect's founder Mohammed Yusuf
Four soldiers have been killed by Boko Haram insurgents in an ambush near Gubdori village in Borno state.
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Following the attack which occurred on Thursday, April 6, five soldiers were injured and four are still missing, according to a soldier.
The Daily Mail citing the account by the soldier reports that the insurgents opened fire on the army convoy heading to the small town of Gulumba in Borno state.
The soldier said military reinforcements came from the town and the attackers were forced to withdraw after suffering heavy casualties.
The insurgents who launched the attacks were said to be from the Boko Haram faction headed by Abu Musab Al-Barnawi, son of the sect's founder, Mohammed Yusuf, the soldier and by two vigilantes confirmed.
The insurgents also attacked the military base in Wajirko village, 150 kilometres (90 miles) from Maiduguri, capital of Borno state, forcing the soldiers to flee.
A resident said the gunmen arrived in pickups and engaged soldiers in the base just outside the village in a heavy shootout.
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He said: "The soldiers were outgunned and forced to withdraw from the base and allowed the gunmen, who were from Mamman Nur faction, to take over the base which they looted and set on fire.”
The resident however noted that villagers were not attacked by the insurgents.
According to the Punch, a vigilante man named Haram Mustapha Karimbe, assisting the military in its fight against Boko Haram confirmed the attack on the army base.
"There were no reports of casualties from either side but the (military) base was completely burnt by the Boko Haram terrorists and the soldiers fled,” the vigilante said.
On Wednesday, April 5, Boko Haram militants also attacked Abbati, a farming community outside Maiduguri, where they killed seven men and stole 360 heads of livestock.
According to Press TV, in recent weeks, the insurgents have intensified their attacks in areas near Lake Chad, stealing food from residents after raiding their farms.
They have also killed several civilians they accused of cooperating with the military.
In a related news reports, Most Rev. Oliver Doeme, the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Maiduguri, has revealed that no fewer than 500 Catholics were killed by Boko Haram members in Borno state.
Legit.ng reported that The cleric speaking in Maiduguri on Wednesday, April 5, lamented that 250 Catholic churches were set ablaze by the Boko Haram in 2014 alone in the North-East, while 25 reverend fathers and 40 reverend sisters have being rendered homeless.
Doeme, who described the birth of Boko Haram as an “offshoot of corruption” in the country, noted that 80,000 Catholics were displaced by the sect members, while 64,000 fled into Cameroon.
Legit.ng gathered that over 50 Catholic catechists were displaced in Adamawa, Yobe and Borno states at the peak of the Boko Haram insurgency.
In this Legit.ng video, members of the Bring Back Our Girls group commemorate two years of the Chibok girls' abduction.
Source: Legit.ng
