force made up of troops from Nigeria, Niger and Chad, from its base,
killing scores of soldiers and civilians in the process.
According to fleeing residents, who escaped on canoes, some people
drowned in Lake Chad, while running from the attack on the key base
situated on Nigeria's border with Chad.
"They came in their hundreds driving several Hilux patrol vehicles,
trucks and some were on motorcycles and immediately began to throw
explosives and bombs," fisherman Audu Labbo told UK's The Guardian on
phone, Sunday night.
The insurgents were said to have also fired rocket-propelled grenades
and automatic assault rifles. Some soldiers removed their uniforms and
threw away their rifles, Labbo said.
Troops from Nigeria and neighbouring Chad, Cameroon and Niger
reportedly fought on Saturday until they ran out of ammunition.
A senior security officer in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state,
confirmed to the Guardian that the military base at Baga, 125 miles
from Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, was under the control of the
Boko Haram insurgents. According to him, the multinational force fled
because it received no reinforcements despite holding out for several
hours.
Maina Maaji Lawan, senator representing Borno North, however believes
the military abandoned their base.
"There is definitely something wrong that makes our military abandon
their posts each time there is an attack from Boko Haram," the senator
told BBC World Service.
Baga was the last town in northern Borno under government control.
With the town now under the control of the militants, fears have
heightened that they could use it as a base to attack Maiduguri.
Boko Haram has been fighting to create an Islamic State since 2009.
The campaign has led to the loss of thousands of lives and
displacement of over one million people.
No comments:
Post a Comment