Boko Haram Burns villages after looting food supplies
Boko Haram jihadists razed three villages in northeast Nigeria in attacks that killed some people and injured several others, civilian militia and residents told several news agencies including AFP and NAN.
The terrorists arrived in trucks to attack the neighbouring villages of Dala-Melari, Fuguri and Femari villages, in Konduga Local Government Area about six kilometres (3.8 miles) outside Borno state capital Maiduguri.
The insurgents attacked the communities at about 8:30 pm; killed some persons, set houses ablaze and carted away food items.
The attack came barely 12 hours after the insurgents killed some farmers and abducted others at Kuwa-Yangeya village on Maiduguri-Damboa Road on Saturday.
An eyewitness, Goni Umar, said the insurgents attacked the communities on gun trucks and motorcycles.
Umar said the insurgents carted away food items from shops and houses before setting them ablaze. He added that the villagers fled into the bush while some others ran to Maiduguri.
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“On our way to Maiduguri, we saw troops and police heading to the villages”. Brig.-Gen. Bulama Biu, the Acting General Officer Commanding (GOC), 7 Division, confirmed the attack. In a Short Service Message (SMS) to NAN, Biu said that troops had successfully repelled the attack, adding that the insurgents fled into the bush. “Troops have been deployed since 8:45 pm and they are still combing the area in order to apprehend the culprits,” he said.
Another eyewitness said that: “They completely burnt the villages after looting food supplies.”
The attacks came hours after the jihadists hacked to death a dozen farmers working on their fields in Kalla village, five kilometres away.
In recent days Boko Haram militants have increasingly attacked civilian targets in the region.
On Thursday, they looted and burnt a village in northeast Borno state after fighting off soldiers protecting it, a local official told AFP.
Boko Haram’s nine-year violence has killed 27,000 people and displaced two million more, creating a dire humanitarian crisis. The conflict has spilled into Nigeria’s northern neighbours — Chad, Niger and Cameroon.
