20 killed in B’Haram attack on military base

JTF spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Sagir Musa

AT  least 20 persons died in Munguno, Borno State on Sunday when attackers suspected to be members of the violent Islamic sect, Boko Haram, assaulted a military barracks in the village.

Agency reports indicated that the attackers arrived Munguno, about 200 kilometres away from Maiduguri, the state capital, and first killed the village head before attacking the barracks.

Spokesman for the Joint Military Task Force, Lt.-Col. Sagir Musa, confirmed the incident.

Musa was quoted to have said in a statement that “The encounter led to the death of 20 suspected Boko Haram terrorists.

“Three four-wheel drive vehicles and eight motor cycles used by the suspects were destroyed and several arms and ammunition were recovered.

“The following items were also recovered, seven AK 47 rifles, 10 rocket propelled grenades, two RPG Tubes, large quantities of assorted ammunition and eight assorted magazines.”

Musa said that the JTF had also arrested suspected masterminds of last week’s bomb blasts in Maiduguri.

The Sunday attack on Munguno came barely hours after the leader of Boko Haram, Abubakar Shekau, reportedly released a video footage in which he denied any peace talk with the Federal Government.

He was also said to have in the video, produced in Hausa Language, that his men would retaliate for every member of the sect killed by security agents. Shekau said the sect would deal with the man who ‘posed’ as the leader of the group and who announced a ceasefire agreement with the government.

“Whoever kills any of our members should await a grave retaliation from us. We will continue waging war against them until we succeed in establishing an Islamic state in Nigeria,” Shekau was quoted as saying.

According to Associated Press reports the new video was sent by the sect to a northern journalist on Friday.

One Abu Mohammed Ibn Abdul-Aziz, who claimed to be second-in-command to Shekau, had during a radio conference with journalists in Maiduguri, in November last year, said the sect was willing to meet with the government in Saudi Arabia.

 Abdul-Aziza also named ex-Head of State Muhammadu Buhari and others as mediators for Boko Haram. Buhari turned down the assignment.

Abdul-Aziz also asked for compensation for members of the sect that had been killed and for the rebuilding of their mosques destroyed during attacks.

He had said, “We are not actually challenging the state, as people are saying, but the security (forces) that are killing our members, children and wives.

 “We are highly offended but if this government is sincere, everything (the attacks) will come to an end. We want to discuss but the government must show sincerity in its handling of the situation.”

Also in January, the same Abdul-Aziz announced a ceasefire agreement with government in Maiduguri but several attacks suspected to have been carried out by Boko Haram have continued to occur.

Neither Boko Haram nor other terrorist groups in the country has claimed responsibility for Sunday’s attack as at the time of this report.

 In January, a new terrorist group said to be  a breakaway faction of Boko Haram claimed responsibility for the attack on Nigerian troops in Kogi State on their way for peace mission in Mali.

 More than 1,000 persons have been killed in Boko Haram attacks on drinking joints, places of worship, military and police facilities since 2009.

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