Boko Haram kills seven soldiers, four policemen in Borno

Sade AdewaleFebruary 17, 2021

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At least seven Nigerian soldiers have been confirmed killed after a deadly ambush by Boko Haram terrorists in Borno State.

The affected soldiers were attached to the 153 Task Force Battalion in Marte Local Government Council of Borno State.

According to the sources, the troops were caught by surprise when the terrorists swooped on them at 10 a.m. on Monday.

They, however, put up a strong fight to defend their base and ward off the insurgents.

But despite their gallant efforts, the soldiers were overwhelmed “because they could not withstand the superior firepower of the terrorists”, our sources said.

The unit, which was totally dislodged, has now been moved to Dikwa, another local government area, a development that has now opened up Marte to further attacks.

To this end, the army authorities have issued advisories to troops in Sector 3 (especially those in Baga, Cross Kauwa, Kekeno and Monguno and the areas surrounding Marte) to be on red alert.

Monday’s attack on Marte Local Government by the extremist Boko Haram group makes it the third onslaught on the area in a month, military insiders said.

The terrorists had ambushed soldiers at the location on January 10 and 15. The casualty rates from those attacks are unknown.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday evening, Boko Haram terrorists have attacked and shot four police officers attached to a mobile unit in an ambush in Borno.

It was gathered that the terrorists laid an ambush at 4:00 pm Tuesday on the unit on special duty stationed at Dapchi town.

A source said that two policemen with the rank of inspector and two sergeants lost their lives during the deadly attack.

“Sadly, we lost inspector James Inalegwu, inspector Obutu Mathias with two other sergeants, John Taiwo and Ade Seriki.”

“Arrangement is ongoing to evacuate the remains of the deceased to the morgue.” the source said.

The attack came barely 24 hours after the jihadist fighters attacked and killed eight soldiers in a military base in Marte.

Boko Haram insurgents have continued to launch deadly attacks on security operatives across the state, leading to the deaths of many frontline security forces fighting the terrorists.