Suspected Boko Haram terrorists have attacked a military formation in Mairari community, Guzamala Local Government Area of Borno State, with some soldiers feared killed.
The attack reportedly occurred around midnight on Tuesday and lasted for more than two hours, according to local sources who spoke to The PUNCH.
The Chairman of Guzamala Local Government Area, Umar Sheriff, confirmed the incident to the newspaper on Wednesday, saying the attackers specifically targeted the military post.
Sheriff said casualty figures were yet to be established but confirmed that no civilian was reported killed in the incident.
“The incident occurred last night around 12 am. Though I don’t have statistics regarding the casualties yet, because it’s not everything we are told. It’s a security matter. But I know that no civilian was killed,” he said.
He described the attack as a major incident, noting that the community had not witnessed an assault of such scale in recent times.
“They have never attacked as much as this time, but thank God, the military were able to repel them,” he added.
The chairman said the situation had returned to calm and disclosed that he planned to visit the community on Thursday to assess the impact of the attack.
“The situation is calm. I will be there tomorrow morning (Thursday) to evaluate the situation,” he said.
However, local sources who spoke to The PUNCH on condition of anonymity claimed that both the military and the attackers might have suffered casualties.
One source said there were reports that seven soldiers had been killed, but stressed that the figure had not been independently verified.
“I know there are military casualties. It was rumoured that seven soldiers were killed, but no one could verify that yet,” the source said.
Another source said the intensity of the gunfire had heightened tension across the community, adding that the attackers might also have suffered losses.
“That attack left the entire town in tension. With the gunfire yesterday, there is no way that the terrorists will not suffer casualties. Both local forces and the military stood their ground,” the source said.
Efforts to obtain further details from the military were unsuccessful, as the Acting Military Information Officer of the North-East Joint Task Force, Operation Hadin Kai, Captain Mohammed Goni, neither answered nor returned calls as of press time.
