Military kills three Boko Haram members scouting for food in Borno

Three suspected Boko Haram members on a raid for food in a Borno town have been killed by the military. Three members of the community, Lassa, in the Askira-Uba Local Government Area of Borno State, were said to have been injured during an exchange of gunfire between the insurgents and the security agents.

A resident of Lassa, Ibrahim Satumari, told journalists on the phone that the insurgents invaded the town on Friday evening with a plan to cart away food items.He said they looted shops and residential houses for food after chasing residents with gunshots.

He said the attackers who came on a looting spree had scared the residents from the town and had begun to loot before the military engaged them in a gun duel that forced them to retreat. Satumari said the three  persons killed were members of the Boko Haram sect while the three gunshot victims are residents hit by stray bullets.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Army said on Saturday that its troops, attached to Operation Lafiya Dole, had rescued 20 persons abducted by the Boko Haram terrorists in the Tarmuwa Local Government Area of Yobe State.

The army confirmed that the insurgents attacked Babban Gida, the headquarters of Tarmuwa Local Government Area on Thursday and abducted the persons after they failed to overrun the troops’ location.

The Nigerian Army Operations Media Coordinator, Col Aminu Iliyasu, said the troops engaged the Boko Haram in a gun battle which lasted over an hour and were able to rescue 20 abducted persons.

In a release, Iliyasu said the abductees included a team of medical personnel comprising one Musa Bulama, a medical doctor; Gana Yelwa, a nurse and Malam Bala Musa, a Yobe State Primary Healthcare ambulance driver.

He said, “Babban Gida, the administrative Headquarters of Tarmuwa local council came under attack by some marauding Boko Haram criminals.  The terrorists sneaked into the community in nine gun trucks to unleash terror on the residents while simultaneously attempting to overrun the troops deployed in the community. In the process, they looted some properties and abducted some citizens with obvious intent to conscript them into their criminal fold.

“Troops of Operation Lafiya Dole and the Air Task Force engaged the criminal insurgents. After a fierce fight that lasted about one hour, all 20 abductees of the criminal insurgents including a team of medical personnel were recovered by the gallant troops.“Others equally rescued were Adamu Madugu, Tukur Abdulkarim, Ibrahim Sulaiman and 14 males who are all teenagers.