Read Time:4 Minute, 25 Second
Five persons, including a soldier, have been killed in Sabongari Hyambula in Madagali Local Government Area of Adamawa State following a gun duel between the military and members of the outlawed Boko Haram sect.
It was learnt yesterday that the insurgents who were apparently on their way to carry out terrorist activities, had run into a military checkpoint in the area, a border town with Borno State, and opened fire on the troops.
In the exchange of gunfire between the terrorists and the military, two civilian passersby, a soldier and two members of the sect were killed.
The attack came a day after gunmen, suspected to be members of the sect attacked a village in Taraba State, killing 17 people.
Worried by the incessant violence in the state, the Taraba House of Assembly has called on the federal government to intervene and provide security for the people in the crisis area.
The Defence Headquarters (DHQ), which yesterday announced the arrest of some suspects over the reign of terror in Taraba State, said some of them under interrogation admitted to being members of Boko Haram.
Giving detail on the attack in Adamawa State, a witness told reporters in Yola that the gunmen attacked the military checkpoint in the border town in the night, adding that the soldiers repelled the attackers after a prolonged gun duel that lasted several hours.
As at press time, military authorities were yet to confirm the attack as the spokesman for the 23 Armoured Brigade, Yola, Captain Jafaru Nuhu, said he had not been briefed on the incident.
Gunmen believed to be Boko Haram members had earlier killed at least 17 people in an attack on Kauyen-Yaku village in Taraba State.
Residents of the town however put the death toll from the Tuesday attack at 35 and said another 15 were still missing.
The gunmen, thought to have been Fulani herdsmen, were said to have disguised as soldiers when they stormed the village, setting it alight and shooting residents, Taraba police spokesman Joseph Kwaji, told Agence France Presse (AFP).
"Some unknown gunmen attacked Kauyen-Yaku village and killed 17 people while four others were injured.
"Several homes were burnt in the attack by the gunmen who came from the neighbouring Nasarawa State," Kwaji said.
Also speaking on the crisis in the state, DHQ yesterday said the military had arrested a group of terrorists disguised as herdsmen from a camp in the outskirts of Wukari.
It added that on interrogation, the suspects admitted being members of Boko Haram.
The Director of Defence Information (DDI), Major General Chris Olukolade, in a statement said other members of the group died after an attack on a military checkpoint at Gindin Dorowa, a suburb of Wukari.
According to him, other members of the group were also sighted during air surveillance and later trailed to their camp where they engaged the troops in a battle.
"The terrorists were clad in the usual pattern of dress of their counterparts operating in Borno and Yobe States," he added.
He said one of the apprehended armed men confessed that he had been fighting for the terrorist group in Borno State and was recently brought to Wukari in furtherance of their mission.
He said assorted arms and ammunition were recovered from the suspects.
Olukolade also stated that the curfew imposed on Wukari and its environs would be relaxed soon.
"Troops have maintained patrol of the area while a house-to-house search for arms is ongoing," he added.
In addition, he confirmed that troops on patrol of the Lake Chad Islands have made some arrests.
He said among those arrested was a boat operator who ferries terrorists across the Lake Chad while another confessed to being a supplier of hard drugs to the terrorists.
Meanwhile, the Taraba State House of Assembly has passed a resolution directing the state acting Governor, Alhaji Garba Umar, to ask the federal government to immediately provide security in parts of the state affected by the raging violence.
The resolution, which was brought under matter of urgent public importance, was co-sponsored by all the seven members representing the five local government areas in the southern zone, among who is the Speaker, Hon. Josiah Sabo Kente.
The lawmakers equally directed the executive to send enough relief materials to all the victims of the crisis in all the affected areas.
In a bid to empower the local government councils affected to adequately deal with the security situation in their areas, the resolution also urged the executive arm of government to direct the Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs to release enough funds to the affected local government councils as a matter of urgency.
In the same vein, the lawmakers called on the executive arm to direct the appropriate agency of government to resuscitate vigilante groups in the state so that they can assist security agencies in intelligence gathering and other security networking.
The motion, which was moved by Hon. Mark Useni was seconded by Hon. Mohammed Abdulkarim, and was unanimously adopted by the assembly.
Facebook Comments